Drivers: Coffee Better Than Sleep
French researchers have tested the driving performance of sleep-deprived drivers.
They gave the drivers decaf coffee, regular coffee, or allowed them to have a 30-minute nap. They then counted the number of line crossings during a driving test.
The decaf drinkers racked up a total of 159 line crossings while drowsy, compared to just 2 line crossings during the daytime driving test. Nappers did better, crossing lines only 84 times. But surprisingly, the coffee drinkers did the best in the sleepy driving test, crossing lines a total of 27 times.
So it seems that coffee is a better choice if you are tired while driving. Note that in 20-25 year old drivers the nap was almost as effective as caffeine. For those aged 40-50 the nap didn’t really do much.
More in the NY Times blog.
6 Comments
[...] thought it was interesting (as did Energy Fiend, which is where we picked this up) that for you young whippersnappers, you just sleep better, so the nap was more effective than in [...]
I wonder what kind of coffee (mild, medium, dark) and how much of it per cup? I know a lot of people who drink sissy coffee (see through and watery) and I would think that if they drink it on a daily basis, they would be used to to.
JW: True. However other studies (sorry no link) have shown that lower amounts of caffeine at regular intervals are arguably better at providing benefits than a massive single jolt. (Like swilling-down a triple espresso in a minute).
From a safety standpoint… 30 minutes is probably not enough to have any lasting effect on anyone sleepy enough to cross a line in the road while driving. Pulling over and adequately resting should be the only cure for sleepy driver.
As someone who has admittedly driven ’sleepy’ before, I can tell you that a 20 minute nap actually can do wonders when you’re tired – and if you take that nap the moment you start showing signs that you’re tired, you *should* be fine for at least a short while after. I don’t recommend going out and driving while sleepy, but naps are amazing. Caffeine is good, too – but both together is probably your best bet. Go to a 7-11 or dunkin donuts and get a large coffee, drink half, then nap for 20-30 min. Drink the rest of your coffee in sips the rest of the way so you don’t crash off the caffeine. Works for me.
i remember hearing about the “caffeine nap”. Where you drink a cup of coffee fast and then take a 15 minute nap. Supposedly very refreshing. They should have tried that too.