Online-only: Drunk-driving crashes a growing risk for young women, study finds
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* Teddi Dineley Johnson

Fatal alcohol-related car crashes are on the rise among young women drivers, a new study finds. Closing a long-held gender split, the rising rates now place young women at the same risk level as their male counterparts for being involved in fatal drunk-driving crashes.

Published in May in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, the research found that among women ages 16–20, the risk of being involved in a drunk-driving crash has been increasing steadily since 1996. While the total number of young men involved in fatal alcohol-related wrecks is still greater because men drink more, at a given blood-alcohol level young women now appear to have the same risk of being involved in a fatal crash as their male peers, the study said.

In 1996, at any given blood-alcohol level, young men were at a higher risk of a fatal crash than young women, according to the study. But by 2007, that gender gap had closed. While the reasons for the rise are unclear, the study authors noted that it might be because young women are taking greater risks on the road.

“Young women who drink and drive may be behaving more like young men who drink and drive,” said lead study author Robert Voas, PhD, a senior research scientist in the Alcohol, Policy and Safety Research Center at the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation in Calverton, Md.

The study drew on information from a government reporting system on fatal traffic accidents across the United States. The researchers compared blood-alcohol information from nearly 6,900 fatal crashes in 2006 with information on about 6,800 U.S. drivers who were part of the 2007 U.S. National Roadside Survey.

Overall, the risk of being killed — or at least involved — in a fatal crash climbs in tandem with drivers’ blood alcohol levels, regardless of their age. But because women typically drink less alcohol than men, they are less frequently arrested for impaired driving and are less frequently involved in alcohol-related crashes, the study authors noted. Even still, the troubling trend underscores the need for prevention strategies targeting youth and heightened law enforcement, the study authors noted.

The study shines a light on another troubling trend: Between 1996 and 2007, the risk of being involved in a fatal car crash doubled among sober 16-year-old male drivers. Again, the reason for the increase is not quite clear, said study co-author Eduardo Romano, PhD.

“But we speculate that it may have a lot to do with distraction,” Romano said. “Sober kids are more at risk, and we think it may be related to texting and the other new technologies they are using so much.”

The researchers pointed to a need for drunk-driving prevention interventions as well as a need for programs to address distracted driving.

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