The number of teenagers who are drinking and driving has dropped by
54% in the past two decades, according to a new report released Tuesday
by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In 2011, when asked if they drink and drive, 90% of the high school students 16 and older surveyed by the CDC said they did not.
However,
"motor vehicle crashes remain the leading cause of death among teens in
this country. There are more than 2,000 teens aged 16-19 killed each
year and many of those deaths are alcohol-related," said CDC Director
Dr. Thomas R. Frieden. "Almost a million high school teens aged 16 and
over drove after drinking alcohol in 2011 and we calculate that high
school teens were responsible for about 2.4 million episodes of drinking
and driving a month."
The report also tells us that 85% of
students who admitted to driving after drinking also participated in
binge drinking in the past 30 days.
Frieden explained that
drinking and driving is especially risky for younger drivers, who are 17
times more likely to die in an accident when alcohol is involved.
The
study examined data from CDC's 1991-2011 Youth Risk Behavior
Surveillance System, which monitors six types of behaviors that raise
the risk of death and disability among youth and young adults.
The
surveillance system includes national surveys given to public and
private students in grades nine through 12. Teens in all 50 states and
the District of Columbia completed voluntary and anonymous
questionnaires that asked questions about current drinking and driving
habits, alcohol use and binge drinking.
Teens were asked whether
they had operated a motor vehicle after drinking alcohol one or more
times during the 30 days before answering the survey.
Significant findings in the study include:
-- 10.3% of teens reported drinking and driving in 2011, compared to 22.3% in 1991.
-- 11.7% of male students were more likely to be drinking and driving, compared to 8.8% of female students.
-- Hispanic (11.5%) and White students (10.6%) were more likely to drink and drive than African-American students (6.6%)
--
7.2% of 16-year-olds reported drinking and driving, which increased to
11.5% among 17-year-olds. Among students who reported drinking and
driving, 84.6% reported binge drinking, defined as consuming five or
more drinks in a row.
While the report shows progress has been
made during the last 20 years in reducing teen drinking and driving,
driving among teens also declined during the past decade.
Some of
the factors that have contributed to the reduction in drunk driving
include raising the minimum drinking age to 21 in all U.S. states, zero
tolerance laws making it illegal for teens to have any alcohol in their
system while driving, and the increase in graduated driver's licensing
programs, which ease new drivers into having full driving privileges.
"We've
seen teen driving fatalities fall by nearly 40% in nearly five years
because of graduated drivers' license laws as well as other
interventions," Frieden said.
He stressed the importance of
states, pediatricians, and parents playing a role in educating teens
about the dangers of drinking and driving. And he urged parents to set
an example by not drinking and driving, and signing agreements with
their teens to not drink and drive, as well as teaching teens to never
get into a vehicle with anybody who has been drinking.
