Coffee helps keeps truckies safe
Long-haul truck drivers who drink coffee or other caffeinated drinks are significantly less likely to have an accident than their uncaffeinated peers.
Long-haul truck drivers who drink coffee or other caffeinated drinks are significantly less likely to have an accident than their uncaffeinated peers.
Australian researchers looked at data on 530 drivers recently involved in a crash, comparing them with 517 who had not had an accident within the past 12 months. All were driving tractor units with one, two or three trailers.
The researchers interviewed all the drivers, gathering information about various health and lifestyle issues, including caffeine consumption over the past month, the British Medical Journal reports.
After adjusting for age, driver experience, distance driven, hours of sleep, naps, night driving and other factors, they found that drivers who consumed caffeine were 63% less likely to be involved in a crash.
Lead author Lisa Sharwood, of the George Institute for Global Health in Sydney, says this does not mean caffeinated drinks are the answer for road safety.
“Clearly, drivers are using caffeinated substances to help them stay awake,” she says. “While this may be useful for a period of time, it should really be seen as part of drivers’ overall fatigue and health management in a quite dangerous industry.
“It isn’t sustainable to go without sleep. But caffeine is useful as part of a wider strategy.”
NBR staff
Tue, 02 Apr 2013
Tue, 02 Apr 2013
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Coffee helps keeps truckies safe
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