5 Unique Ways To Prevent A Major Car Accident

As we all know, California is commonly known for Hollywood lifestyle. Many people who reside on the East Coast, where there is a lot of snow, dream of living in sunny Southern California weather. As an attorney for families in Southern California, Attorney Damien Nolan has a very cool recommendation on how hydration will help lower the chances of getting into a major car accident.

As professionals in car related issues, many car accidents and personal injury attorney have their own unique recommendation that will help drivers prevent getting into a car crash. Check out these 5 unique ways that may help you from getting into a major car accident.

Avoid Driving After Doing ‘Hot Yoga’ or Bikram Yoga

Who would have thought that driving after a ‘hot yoga’ or Bikram yoga session can impact your chances of a car accident? While yoga does help to improve your health, it may not be such a good idea to drive immediately after an intense session.

Take the case of Hunter Pence for example. Pence is a baseball right-fielder who played for the San Francisco Giants. You can expect that any professional athlete to have dexterity higher than your average person.

One day, he tried out hot yoga that his friend recommended and ended up exhausted after one session. While pulling into a parking lot, he backed his car into another car. Now, this type of incident never happened to Pence before.

However, one effect that hot yoga has on participants is that their core body temperature can skyrocket to over 103 degrees Fahrenheit (which can cause dizziness and light-headedness). This is especially concerning when one needs to drive afterward. If you do end up needing to drive after a hot yoga session, make sure to stay hydrated throughout the exercise to cool yourself down.

Drunk Driving - One Leading Cause of Traffic-Related Deaths

It’s not uncommon that driving under influence (from alcohol or drugs) is like signing your own death warrant (and for others). In Mississippi, drunk driving is one leading cause of car accident fatalities.

We all know that driving while drunk heavily affects your ability to drive safely. But does everyone know what actually happens to your body when consuming lots of alcohol? Let’s take a look at some reasons why it hinders your ability to drive.

Alcohol is classified as a depressant because it slows the functions of your central nervous system. It also degrades one’s ability to process information and hand-eye coordination, both of which are required when driving.

This is why when you consume alcohol, your decision-making skills become suppressed and compromise your ability to make the best decision when making decisions in the spur of the moment. Let this be another reminder that you or those you care about should not drive while under the influence.

Dehydration Driving as Dangerous as Drunk Driving

We just talked about drunk driving and what happens when you consume alcohol. However, this car accident attorney states that dehydration driving can be as dangerous as drunk driving.

What? How can being dehydrated be as dangerous as driving drunk? Well, when we become dehydrated, our brain functions start to become conserved, which hinders our ability to drive safely. Let’s talk about what happens to our body when our brain function becomes conserved.

Brain conservation has negative impacts on our reaction time, concentration, ability to think, blood pressure, and muscle function, all of these which affect how well we drive. And you only have to be slightly dehydrated to experience these negative effects of dehydration.

To ensure driving at your best condition, make sure that you have consumed plenty of liquids before you drive. If you have a long drive ahead of you, make sure to bring a bottle of water to help you stay hydrated during the drive.

Age-Related Conditions Effect Driving Performance

As you grow older, it is natural for your body and mind to slowly become impaired. Some of these include your vision, motor skills, and cognition, which are crucial in driving. In addition to these downsides, a car accident attorney in San Antonio has stated that other medical conditions, such as arthritis and dementia, can limit one's ability to drive.

A symptom of arthritis is when moving your neck, arms, hands, and shoulders is difficult. This can impair one’s ability to check for blind spots, switch gears, or move the steering wheel. With dementia, drivers may become distracted and make impulsive maneuvers that make being on the road dangerous for them and for others.

To limit these conditions from affecting your ability to drive, consult a doctor to find out what the best recommendations so you can drive safely. Additionally, perform physical exercise and take medication (that your doctor recommends) that will reduce some of these symptoms and improve your quality of life.

Being Well-Rested Can Improve Your Driving

Nowadays, many of us don’t get the hours of sleep our body needs to stay in top condition. When we consistently lose hours of sleep, our body eventually shuts down and go to sleep. If this occurs while we are driving, it can literally mean the end of our lives.

When we are not rested, our ability to drive suffers immensely. We may have a hard time driving at a consistent speed, staying in a straight line, reacting to a situation promptly, and recognizing hazards on the road.

Studies show that if we are awake for too long, our body will be in the same condition as being legally drunk. This means that every behavior stated above will be shown if we do not get enough sleep.

One can fight off this sleep debt by getting the hours of sleep they need. This means that we should schedule our days accordingly to give ourselves a healthy number of hours to sleep.

Stay Healthy, Prevent a Car Crash

We’ve just discussed 5 unique ways that can prevent a major car accident. Staying healthy has more impact than people may realize. It may seem like little things here and there, but small acts like staying hydrated, sleeping a little more, or exercising can literally be the difference between life and death.

On top of saving lives, staying healthy is good for us! We can have more days of feeling great and fewer days of being sick or feeling tired. But not all of us need the same thing to be healthy. Make sure that you know what will help you the most and go for it!