Reykjavík Grapevine - 29.06.2018, Page 13

13 The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 11 — 2018
“It should
be common
sense that
even if
there's not
much traf-
fic, there's
still traf-
fic. Do your
sight seeing
off the
road.”
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Watch your meds,
and your sleep
As one might also suspect, what
substances are in your bloodstream can
also affect your driving. Yet for as much
emphasis is placed on alcohol and illicit
substances, 20% of car deaths related
to substances were actually attribut-
able to prescription medication. Are
these people using meds recreationally,
or did they just develop a high toler-
ance? Dr. Kunz says there are no easy
answers.
"The problem with interpreting
toxicological levels, when it comes to
medication, we know what should be
in the blood when it's therapeutic,” he
explains. “If one develops a tolerance,
if you increase your medication slowly,
you won't feel it as well as you would
be increasing it fast. But we don't know
how fast this person increased their
volume of medication, so we don't
know if they've built up a tolerance or
not.”
Either way, you should always have
in mind that a lack of sleep by itself can
impair your driving, and exacerbate
the effect that alcohol and drugs may
have on you. If you spent the night in
a freezing camper and barely got four
hours, your driving is impaired in a
way comparable to having a few drinks
before hitting the road. Be sure you’re
well rested before you get behind the
wheel.
Holy crap, use some
common sense
Some causes of death on the Icelandic
roads are not only preventable; they’re
the result of a complete lack of common
sense.
"Then there are those who get into
accidents because they stopped their
car because they saw a horse, or the
Northern Lights," Dr. Kunz says. He
recounts one fatal accident last year
that involved a tourist standing in the
middle of Route 1, taking pictures of
the Northern lights. Another oncoming
car, also looking at the Northern Lights,
didn't see the tourist, striking and kill-
ing him. "It should be common sense
that even if there's not much traffic,
there's still traffic. Do your sightseeing
off the road."
We all know Icelandic horses are
pretty, and you might be tempted to
just stop your car in the middle of some
quiet country road to snap a few pics. Do
yourself and other drivers a favour: pull
over at least a metre from the side of the
road first, and get out on the non-road
side, before taking photos or gazing
upwards at the Northern Lights.