1996 Chevrolet Astro Owner's Manual - Page 141

It's the amount of alcohol that counts. For example, if the sameperson drank three double martinis (3 ounces or 90 ml of liquor each)within an hour, the person's BAC would be close to0.12 percent. A person who consumes food just before or during drinking have a somewhat lower will BAC level. There is a gender difference, too.Women generally have a lower relative percentage of body water than men. Since alcohol carried in body water, is this means that a woman generally will reach a higher BAC level than a man of her samebody weight when each has the same number of drinks. at The law in many U.S. states sets the legal limit a BAC of 0.10 percent. In a growing number of U.S. states, and throughout Canada, the limitis 0.08 percent. In some other countriesit's even lower. The BAC limit for all commercial drivers in the U.S. is 0.04 percent. The BAC will be over 0.10 percent after three to six drinks (in one hour). Of course, as we've seen, it depends on how much alcohol is in the drinks, and how quickly the person drinks them. But the ability to drive isaffected well below a BAC of 0.10 percent. Research shows that the driving skills many people are impaired a of at worse at night. All BAC approaching 0.05 percent, and that the effects are drivers are impaired at BAC levels above0.05 percent. Statistics show that the chanceof being in a collision increases sharply for drivers who have a A BAC of 0.05 percent or above. driver with a BAC level of 0.06 percent has doubled his or her chance of having a collision. At a BAC levelof 0.10 percent, the chance this driverhaving a collision is twelve times greater; of at a level of 0.15 percent, the chance is twenty-five times greater! The body takes aboutan hour to rid itself of the alcohol in one drink.No amount of coffee ornumber of cold showers will speed that up. "I'll be careful" isn't the right answer. What if there's an emergency, a need to take sudden action, as when a child darts into the street?A person with even a moderate BAC might not be able to react quickly enough to avoid the collision. 4-3