A new research out by esure motor insurance warns that over 300,000 UK drivers may be suffering from a sleep disorder that could put them in danger of falling asleep at the wheel, posing a huge threat to safety on UK roads.
Obstructive Sleep Apnoea-Hypopnoea Syndrome affects over 1 in 100 people and is where a person has irregular breathing at night thus excessively sleepy during the day. Sufferers do not realise they have this disorder but its risen by a shocking 35 per cent due to the nation’s growing obesity and alcohol problem.
Research shows that overweight men between the ages of 30 and 65 are most at risk as are those who consume excessive amounts of alcohol.
It also found that driving is the everyday activity that makes Brits yawn the most (21%) and a shocking 8% of drivers admit to having fallen asleep at the wheel while over a quarter (28 per cent) have been known to ‘micro-sleep’ -not been able to recall certain parts of their car journey.
The average driver admitted that the longest they’d ever spent behind the wheel without a break was just under four hours - double the recommend maximum amount clearly showing that they are not listening to the UK’s ‘tiredness kills, take a break’ message.
Alternative methods like opening the window in the vain quest to wake up is common fallacy but 8 % of men resort to a more macabre method of slapping themselves across the face.
Give yourselves a big slap on the back for that one.
FemaleFirst Jackie Violet