Sleepiness Making Roads Less Safe

The Centers for Disease Control just released a study claiming that Americans are … no, it’s not fat (though we are). Instead, the CDC is calling us an increasingly sleep-deprived population. The definition of sleep-deprived is getting six hours of sleep or less a night, and the study claims that the number of people doing just that has risen steadily since 1985. It feels like every week a new study claims Americans are working harder and harder, so this comes as no surprise. Until they come up with a way to make it possible to work while sleeping — and wouldn’t that be the day — something’s got to give.

The problem with all that sleeplessness, beyond the obvious health issues, is what happens when we tired Americans get in our cars. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, what happens are accidents: approximately 100,000 of them occurred due to drowsiness last year, including more than 1,500 fatalities. Most accidents strike in the wee hours of the morning — between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. — when, as they say, nothing good ever happens. That axiom’s probably true, but when you’re working the nightshift overtime to support a family, you have to get around somehow, right?

Asleep at the Wheel? You’re Not Alone (Autopia)