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Thomas Carroll Blauvelt

Higher caffeine consumption may cause more truckers to crash

A U.K. expert on transportation safety has found that long-term caffeine consumption raises the risk for an accident among truck drivers. Perhaps you were injured at the hands of a trucker here in New Jersey and are wondering just how it happened. It could be that this habit of high caffeine consumption was an indirect cause. Crash investigators and medical experts would be able to tell you more.

Results of the study

The study involved 3,000 truckers in eight states. Researchers found that nearly 6% more drivers who drank large amounts of coffee or energy drinks reported getting in a crash in the previous three years than drivers who do not consume so much caffeine. Also, those drivers who consume five or more cups of coffee a day reported that they would fail to eat well, would drink more alcohol and would experience poor sleep and overall health.

Coffee still has short-term benefits

Even if coffee is not the sole contributor to those crashes that the heavy drinkers reported, it is still one key factor in an unhealthy lifestyle, which, in turn, can be linked with increased crash risk. Drinking a high amount of caffeine for a short-term boost is still effective, but perhaps not for those who already have negative health behaviors. Researchers say further studies must be conducted.

The study is unique, though, in that it tries to show how the coffee-drinking habits of actual drivers affect them. The drivers were encouraged to answer truthfully as the researchers did not report their answers to their employers. Previous studies have only analyzed the effect of caffeine in laboratory settings, largely because caffeine content in beverages is not standardized.

A lawyer for local representation

Drowsy driving is negligent, so when it’s behind truck accidents, it can allow the victims to pursue a personal injury case. You want to focus on your physical recovery, though, which is why it’s advisable to have a lawyer take on the case. The lawyer may hire investigators to look into the crash and link the trucker’s drowsiness to the crash.

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