Driving under the influence: Don’t Risk It.

The noun definition of a risk is, a situation involving an exposure to danger. While the verb definition is, to expose someone or something valued to danger, harm, or loss. Now, you may be asking, why do I need to know this? Well just like you, this needs to be taught to young adults. A risk is something they take every time they drive under the influence. Many don’t truly understand the true meaning behind the risks that they take. So, we need to teach young adults that yes, there are risk that can lead to a good outcome, such as trying something new like an extracurricular, or even something small like trying a new restaurant and falling in love with the food! These are examples of great risks to take, but we must remind them of the risks that can put not only themselves in danger, but innocent lives as well. The risk they take when driving under the influence is not to be held as insignificant, based on evidence from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Every day 29 people in the US die in accidents due to being under the influence. This is one death every 5o minutes! This is a risk that can also lead to fines, or even jail time if one is stopped by the authorities. This risk alone would end hundreds of future opportunities for someone who is just starting their life. Reminding young adults of this is enough to make them rethink their decision to drive after a night out. There are many ways to avoid driving under the influence, one for example is having a designated driver. Being a designated driver to your friends isn’t always the most exciting, especially if all of your friends are under the influence, but make sure to set up a rotation! A rotating shift between your friends, is a great way to always have a designated driver while still getting a chance to have fun. There are also other outlets for having a designated driver, such as Uber and Lyft. Young adults are the new tech wizards when it comes to today’s technology, so things like setting up an Uber before a night out shouldn’t be too difficult! So, how can we teach young adults to avoid accidents caused by deriving under the influence? Remind them of how it’s not a risk worth taking.