When driving it is important to be clear, but, due to certain circumstances, this is not always the case. The DGT exposes what are the factors that influence drowsiness at the wheel, so it is convenient to take them into account to avoid scares at the wheel.
We must remember that driving in these conditions makes us less attentive, loses our ability to react and, in general terms, makes driving less safe, both for us and for those around us.
The DGT is clear with what are the main causes of drowsiness at the wheel:
Time of day: there are certain times when the human being is more likely to fall asleep. Thus, the early morning, either because of having slept or getting up very early, and the first hours of the afternoon, after eating and in the siesta period, favor the driver to experience a sensation of sleep.
Monotonous road environments: while a city, with its traffic lights, intersections, pedestrians, etc., keeps us alert to all the stimuli around us, driving on a motorway, at 120 km/h constantly and with hardly any interaction, makes that driving becomes monotonous and that we may want to sleep.
If you are a morning or evening driver: you will be in the bands in which it is potentially more common to be sleepy, so it is advisable to be aware and do everything possible to be clear.
Many hours of continuous wakefulness or non-refreshing night’s rest: the body needs rest and if you don’t, it takes its toll. If you have been awake for a long time you will tend to fall asleep at the wheel and if you have slept but not properly and you are not rested, ditto.
To this, we can also add a couple of situations that do not help anything to stay clear in the vehicle.
The first is having a large meal before getting behind the wheel. The blood concentrates in the stomach, which means that we are not so awake. That is why it is recommended to make light intakes so that the body does not have to work so hard.
The second is temperature. If it is hot, the body experiences greater fatigue and can tend to fall asleep, which is why the ideal is to maintain a cool temperature inside the cabin.
