112 million incidents of drinking, driving

There were 300,000 incidents of U.S. drinking and driving daily, or 112 million incidents of drinking and driving in 2010, federal health officials estimate. Linda C. Degutis, director of the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, said for the study, CDC researchers analyzed data from the 2010 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey and used data for those who drank in the previous 30 days. "The (estimated) 4 million adults who drink and drive each year put everyone on the road at risk," Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, director of the CDC, said in a statement. "In fact, nearly 11,000 people (of the more than 42,000 yearly fatal U.S. vehicle crashes) are killed every year in crashes that involve an alcohol-impaired driver." The researchers also estimate: 81 percent of drinking and driving in 2010 was by men. Men ages 21-34 made up 11 percent of the U.S. population in 2010 but were responsible for 32 percent of all drinking and driving episodes. 85 percent of drinking and driving episodes were reported by people who also reported binge drinking, or drinking five or more drinks for men or four or more drinks for women during a short period of time. "Drunk driving is a public health problem with far-reaching effects," Degutis said in a statement. "Drunk drivers, who have delayed reaction times and reflexes, put even the most responsible drivers and pedestrians in harm's way."