Over-The-Counter Medications Can Lead To Impaired Driving
A popular misconception exists about the effect over-the-counter medicines can have on a motor vehicle operator. Most people do not consider over-the-counter drugs to have the ability to impair a driver. However, numerous over-the-counter medicines can make a driver drowsy. Motorists who fail to pay close attention to the medicines they take and how those drugs can affect a person's ability to drive safely endanger those on the road with them. The impaired driving accident lawyers with Montlick & Associates, Attorneys at Law exhaust their extensive knowledge of the law to uncover causes of accidents in the appropriate cases, including drivers who are impaired by medication they bought without a prescription.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) publishes a document called "Drug Facts" with every non-prescription medication available on the market today. The purpose of providing consumers with the particulars about the over-the-counter drug is to educate the consumer on what they are ingesting while alerting them to any potential dangers coincidental to consumption of the product. The FDA will normally include information as to how they expect the average person may react after taking the medication. Every individual might not experience the side effects of taking the drug; every person is unique and what can affect one person might not affect another. Furthermore, an individual's reaction to the drug can be influenced by whether the person was fatigued before taking the medication. Regardless, any driver who ignores the warnings contained in the drug facts has the potential to ruin another's life irrevocably.
Consumers should also use the drug facts statement included with the over-the-counter medication to educate themselves as to how the medicine will react in combination with other substances or other medications. Some over-the-counter medications might be incompatible with prescription drugs because one drug will enhance the side effects of the other. Also, the effects of alcohol can be strengthened when consumed in combination with over-the-counter drugs. Additionally, consumers should only use the nonprescription drugs in accordance with the provided instructions. Taking more medicine than indicated can be dangerous and may cause drowsiness or impairment.
Drowsy driving is as dangerous and as reckless as driving under the influence of alcohol or illicit narcotics. People who become fatigued or start to fall asleep will normally suffer from impaired sensory perception, meaning their vision and hearing capabilities will become diminished. Furthermore, a fatigued person may experience impaired or clouded judgment. Also, a tired driver will demonstrate slower reaction times and may lack the ability to maintain control over his or her vehicle. The signs of a fatigued driver are similar to those exhibited by a drunk driver. A fatigued driver might speed or drive dangerously slow. Also, a fatigued driver may weave in and out of lanes either because he or she is nodding off or because their vision is blurred making it difficult to follow marked lanes.
The FDA published a list of over-the-counter medication that may cause drowsiness. For example, many antihistamines can make people drowsy and impair driving. Any drug containing the active ingredient diphenhydramine, contained in Benadryl, can make a person tired, have a slow reaction time, and make focusing difficult. Some antidiarrhea medication can make a person drowsy. The active ingredient in Imodium called loperamide has the potential to make a driver feel tired. Additionally, antiemetic drugs, which prevent motion sickness, can make a person tried as well.
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Sources: http://www.journalsleep.org/Articles/290422.pdf
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