1997 Chevrolet Camaro Owner's Manual - Page 168

There is a gender difference, too. Women generally have a lower relative percentage of body water than men. Since alcoholis carried in body water, this means that a woman generally will reach a higher BAC level than a man of her samebody weight when each has thesame number of drinks. The law in many U.S. states setsthe legal limit at BAC a of 0.10 percent. In a growing number of U.S. states, and throughout Canada, the limit is0.08 percent. In some other countries, it's even lower. The BAC limit for all commercial drivers inthe United States is0.04 percent. The BAC will be over0.10 percent afterthree to six drinks (in one hour). Of course, aswe've seen, it depends on how much alcohol is in the drinks, and how quickly the person drinks them. But the ability to drive is affected well below a BAC of 0.10 percent. Research shows that the driving skills of many people are impaired at a BAC approaching 0.05 percent, and that the effects areworse at night. All drivers are impaired at BAC levels above0.05 percent. Statistics show that the chance of being in a collision increases sharply for drivers who have a BAC of 0.05 percent or above. A driver with a BAC level of 0.06 percent has doubled his orher chance of having a collision. At a BAC level of 0.10 percent, the chance of this driver having a collision is 12 times greater; at a level of 0.15 percent, the chance is 25 times greater! The body takes about an 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, aswhen a child dartsinto the street? A person with even a moderate BAC might not be able to react quickly enough to avoid the collision. There's something else aboutdrinking and driving that many people don't know. Medical research shows that alcohol in a person's system can make crash injuries worse, especially injuries to the brain, spinal cord or heart. This means that when anyone who has been drinking -- driver or passenger -- is in a crash, that person's chance of being killed or permanently disabled is higher than if the person had not been drinking. 4-4