Drink driving has been reported as one of the causes of road trauma. The moment you choose to drive while intoxicated means subjecting yourself to various health and legal risks of drink driving. Although having a glass of alcohol can be the least of your worries, remember that driving under the influence of alcohol exposes you to the potential of some significant consequences. If you’re concerned about yourself, we’ll give you the reals risk of drink driving.

The Health Risks Of Drinking Alcohol

Aside from facing legal repercussions for drink driving, drinking alcohol can also go a long way to put your health in danger. Below are some health risks of alcohol drinking:

● Alcohol-Use Disorders: Frequent drinking is associated with several health problems including alcohol-use disorders. When a patient’s drinking habits have already caused harm to themselves and others, the doctor might diagnose them as having a alcohol-use disorder.

● Birth Problems: Drinking alcohol during pregnancy can lead to birth defects. Alcohol intoxication while pregnant can even damage a baby’s brain. For that reason alone, it’s best that pregnant women should avoid drinking at all.

●  Health Problems: While light to moderate alcohol drinking can be beneficial to the heart, too much drinking says otherwise. Remember that people who drink too much are predisposed to different kinds of ills such as cancer, heart disease, liver disease, high blood pressure, and sexually transmitted infections. Also, excessive alcohol can also cause sleeping disorders and even depression.

●  Injuries: Keep in mind that drinking alcohol can harm you or anybody else. It also increases the possibility of you being injured or killed. In fact, alcohol has been a significant factor for injuries such as sexual assault injuries, drownings, suicides and most importantly, fatal road accidents.

The Effects Of Drink Driving

Driving can be complicated if it’s done inappropriately. While driving involves complete concentration, proper coordination, and sound judgment, the same can be diminished if driving is linked with drinking. The following are the effects of drink driving:

●  Difficulty in concentrating properly

●  Difficulty to make sound judgments regarding the distance between your car and the other vehicle

●  Difficulty in determining your driving speed

●  Difficulty to stay awake while driving

●  Difficulty in noticing pedestrians, traffic lights and other road hazards

●  Difficulty to see and hear

●  Loss of sense of confidence

●  Reduced ability to respond quickly to your surroundings

The Legal Consequences of Drink Driving

Beyond the mental and physical risks brought by drink driving, driving under the influence of alcohol can have an enormous impact in your life. When you’ve been charged with a DUI offense, everything about your life starts to change. To better understand the legal consequences of drunk driving, let’s take a look at some examples below:

1. License Suspension or Revocation: Being found guilty of drunk driving means having your driver’s license suspended or even revoked in the worst cases. However, the period of license suspension might vary depending on the gravity of the offense. First-time DUI offenders usually have a shorter period of license suspension.

2. Jail Time: In most cases, DUI conviction is usually related to jail time. While drunk driving can be considered as a misdemeanor or felony, you’d still be required to serve a particular jail sentence dependent on your state law.

3. Payment of Fines and Fees: Get ready to pay a hefty amount of fines and fees when you’re charged and convicted with drink driving. In some instances, payment of fines and fees as a penalty might cost you thousands of dollars or more depending on the severity of your offense.

4. Enhanced Penalties: Apart from paying enormous fines and fees, facing jail time and having your license suspended, drink driving is a massive criminal offense which can affect your life in the long run. Take note that DUI convictions can have the following outcomes:

a) It makes you a criminal.

b) It can result in the loss of employment or difficulty to find a new job.

c) If you’re caught drink driving with your kids inside the car, you’d possibly lose your custody or parental rights over your children.

d) It also results in the loss of voting rights and your right to own a firearm.

e) It makes it difficult for you to travel internationally because of your criminal record.

While drinking alcohol is fun for some time, you should, however, do this with precautions. Having a glass of alcohol is more pleasurable if you don’t risk your life and the lives of others. You don’t have to expose yourself to health problems and other legal consequences just because you want to enjoy a drinking spree with friends for a night. If you’re drunk, always think of your own safety and that of others and choose to hail a cab or get a ride instead of getting behind the wheel.

Disclaimer: The information found in this article should only be treated as general reference regarding the real risks of drunk driving. It shouldn’t however, be considered as actual legal advice about drink driving and its health and legal consequences. To have an in-depth understanding of drink driving, get the assistance of a licensed lawyer who is experienced in handling DUI cases in your state.

Joanne Reed

Joanne Reed has been writing about law and business for almost a decade, and is currently writing her next big law project. She is an avid sports fan and loves watching games if she has free time.