Performance Suffering from Lack of Sleep 2006 Sleep Survey: Key Findings

What Parents Need to Know About Teens and Driving

The resources below - provided by the National Sleep Foundation - will also help you learn more about teens and sleep.

Sleep Diary
Did you know a sleep diary is an effective way to track and monitor your child's sleep habits?
Download the sleep diary (PDF)>>

The Doze Family
Have you met the Dozes yet? They're ready to teach your family about sleep.
Meet the Dozes>>

printWhat Parents Need to Know about Teens and Driving

Teens and other young drivers are at risk if they are sleepy and at the wheel of a motor vehicle.

According to several studies, young drivers age 25 or under are involved in more than one-half of fall-asleep crashes. The most troubling consequences of sleepiness are injuries and deaths related to lapses in attention and delayed response times at critical moments, such as while driving.

Drowsiness or fatigue has been identified as a principal cause of many police-reported traffic crashes each year. One study found that being awake for 20 hours produces impairment on a driving simulator equal to a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.05%, which is legally drunk.

Here are some warning signs that indicate when it is not a good time to get behind the wheel:

• Sleep-deprived or fatigued (6 hours of sleep or less triples your risk)
• Suffering from sleep loss, poor quality sleep or a sleep debt
• Planning on driving long distances without proper rest breaks
• Planning on driving through the night, midafternoon or normal sleep times
• Taking sedating medications (e.g., antidepressants, cold tablets, antihistamines)
• Working more than 60 hours a week (increases a driver's risk by 40 percent)
• Working more than one job, and main job involves shift work
• Drinking even small amounts of alcohol
• Driving alone or on a long, rural, dark or boring road

Here are some warning signs that should tell a driver to stop and rest:

• Rolling down the window or turning up the radio to "fight" sleepiness
• Difficulty focusing, frequent blinking or heavy eyelids
• Daydreaming, wandering/disconnected thoughts
• Trouble remembering the last few miles driven, missing exits or traffic signs
• Yawning repeatedly or rubbing eyes
• Trouble keeping head up
• Drifting from lane-to-lane, tailgating or hitting a shoulder rumble strip
• Feeling restless and irritable

This information is used with permission from the National Sleep Foundation.