Dangers of Drowsy Driving

Drowsy driving is more common than you might think. “You see somebody sort of nodding their head, or they start cranking the radio up, or rolling the window down and blasting the air because they’re trying to stay awake. Anyone who’s having those types of symptoms they need to pull over to the nearest rest area,” said Injury Prevention Resource Coordinator Syndi Bultman. The CDC estimates that more than 6,000 fatal crashes that involve a drowsy driver. “Drowsy driving can be extremely dangerous it happens at early morning when the sun is first coming up it happens late at night and it happens in the mid afternoon when you least expect someone to be drowsy,” said Bultman. Warning signs include yawning or blinking frequently, memory trouble, and drifting from your lane. “They’ve done these studies on driving and sleep deprivation and it’s shown to be worse than driving under the influence,” said Sleep Medicine Physician Dr. Jose Colon. You should never get behind the wheel if you weren’t able to get adequate sleep. “If you pull an all-nighter you didn’t go into the deep stage of sleep to replenish your brain and that can lead to cognitive distinction dodgy feeling,” said Dr. Colon. The CDC said one in 25 adult drivers have reported that they fell asleep while driving in the previous month. Lee Health has a sleep disorder center to help those struggling with sleep. You can learn more by searching for it on leehealth.org. View More Health Matters video segments at    / leehealth   Lee Health in Fort Myers, FL is the largest network of health care facilities in Southwest Florida and is highly respected for its expertise, innovation and quality of care. For more than 100 years, we’ve been providing our community with personalized preventative health services and primary care to highly specialized care services and robotic assisted surgeries. Lee Health - Caring People. Inspiring Care. Visit LeeHealth.org