Hangover driving` as bad as `drunk driving`

Melbourne – Researchers have suggested that driving with a hangover can be as dangerous as driving after drinking too many beers.

The Dutch study has revealed the risk of getting behind the wheels even when the alcohol concentration in blood is not detectable, News.com.au reported.

The researchers put respondents through simulated driving tests the night after they consumed about 10 alcoholic drinks and took the tests after their blood alcohol concentrations had returned to zero.

After comparing their performances with how they performed after a night when they did not drink, the study found that hangovers can significantly increase the number of lapses in attention, and weaving on the road.

Dr Joris Verster of Utrecht University said that the magnitude of driving impairment is higher than that observed with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.05 per cent, which is the legal limit for driving in many countries.

The study was presented at the Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs conference in Brisbane.