“You just don’t know!”

  • Published
  • By Senior Master Sgt. Scott Urfer
  • 65th Logistics Readiness Squadron
LAJES AIR FIELD, Azores (USAFENS) --  I was having a conversation with a much-respected colleague and chiding the individual for drinking a couple of beers and still thinking he was safe to drive. As this individual explained how much time had passed and that they felt driving was OK, I wondered, "How does this person know? Why would they just 'guess' with something this important?"

If this person was over the legal drinking limit and got stopped, they could've very well been putting their career on the line! Why would someone risk that?

It wasn't the first time this sort of situation happened. I was working a fund-raising booth with someone else last July, and when that person was getting ready to head for the vehicle and drive home, I couldn't believe it. That person had been drinking all day. It really surprised me to hear the same line, "I was limiting myself to one beer an hour, so I should be fine." Of course, this was eight hours and eight beers later. I insisted on driving that person home.

Busting myths was the fuel behind my performing an alcohol study April 29. The truth is, without the proper equipment on board, no one can "just estimate" where they'd fall in a blood alcohol test. Too many factors come into play such as age, sex, metabolic rate, body makeup, weight, exercise, last meal and whether or not you're hydrated. These factors are all part of a greater equation that collectively calculate how quickly alcohol is processed in your body.

When people find they're over the limit by official means, it's usually too late - they've been pulled over. This never leads to a happy ending from that point forward in a person's career.

So, for our study, we divided 11 people from all across base into four groups to prove just that. They allowed themselves to have their blood alcohol tested and have their breath analyzed. They were also asked to give anonymous answers to a questionnaire.

The results proved interesting. Even with four control groups, drinking the same amount of alcohol, each person tested differently on each of the three blood-draws the lab took. Two people were asked to only drink one beer and even three hours later alcohol could be traced in their system.

Another surprising result was some people's blood alcohol level continued to increase long after the last drink hit their lips. Several people peaked over the legal limit here of .05 for differing periods of time.

Ask yourself this question the next time you have a drink. Do I know how this amount of alcohol will formulate into a blood/alcohol reading? Why risk it? Have a plan before you take the first drink.

Ultimately, there isn't a good way to predict how an individual will test; there are too many variables to consider each and every time a person is drinking, unless you have the proper equipment to test.

Keep this in mind: You just don't know.