Image: sleepdisorders
A driver who is not driving under the influence of liquor can become as deadly on the road if deprived of sleep. Liquor consumption and lack of sleep both impairs coordination and judgment while seriously slowing down the reaction time of drivers when faced with emergency situations. These two conditions require the same solution which is to keep off the road and sleep it off to regain the physical and mental capability to operate a moving vehicle.
Sleep-deprived driving is one of the major causes of vehicular accidents particularly among truckers and the military. Sleep deprivation is usually self-imposed brought about by demands of work. Another reason for lessened sleep is the active use of computers specifically at night which effectively keeps people awake when they are supposed to be sleeping and resting. Those who bring this lack of sleep on themselves usually end up sleeping in the most inappropriate time and the most dangerous is while driving.
Excessive sleepiness may be caused by a night shift schedule which runs counter to the human body clock. Even the seemingly enough sleep during the day cannot compensate for not sleeping at night. A person experiencing jet lag may also go through the same physical manifestation of decreased alertness and impaired judgment. Lack of sleep may be caused by an illness such as insomnia and narcolepsy.
Statistics show that a big percentage of drivers actually doze off while driving with more men doing so than women. There are moves to require physicians to report drivers who have identified sleeping problems including those that are chronically sleep-deprived. However this is seen by many as counterproductive since these people may choose to forego treatment rather than being reported as not fit to drive. When this happens, the problem worsens since people who seriously need help for their condition will willfully deprive themselves of the treatment while not making the roads any less dangerous with their presence.