Truck drivers use drugs and booze on the road!

A new study published in Occupational and Environmental Medicine proves that booze and drug usage is common in truck drivers on the road and this issue is associated with poor working conditions. This issue comes with two concerns: from one hand, the drivers` health and from the other hand, the risks that decrease road safety. In the study researchers discovered that the mostly used substances by truck drivers are alcohol, cocaine, cannabis and amphetamines. “Psychoactive mind altering substances have been improved to impair driving and cause a greater risk of traffic accidents. Therefore gas stations, trucker stops and companies that employ these professionals must be more closely observed regarding the sale and consumption of these substances”, wrote the authors. Professor Allard van der Beek of the Institute for Health and Care Research at VU University situated in Amsterdam states that the consumption of these substances decreases concentration and represents a real public danger. He adds that such drugs can make drivers fall asleep, cause accidents, severe injury and even death.