Awardee OrganizationBOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS
Description
Abstract Text
Hingson and Howland (2002) estimated that 1,138 college students die from alcohol-related
traffic crashes annually. An additional 307 college students die annually from alcohol-related non-traffic
unintentional injuries and 500,000 college students annually sustain alcohol-related injuries (Hingson and
Howland 2002). Caffeinated alcoholic beverages target young adults with the promise that the caffeine will
counteract the sedating effects of alcohol and thus let the consumer remain alert and active longer, while
continuing to drink. If young people erroneously believe that caffeine in beer will protect them from alcohol-related
injury, then such beverages may increase mortality and morbidity in this population. Thus, it is
important to have accurate information about the extent to which such beverages affect impairment both
acutely and residually. Such information could correct misunderstandings young people have about the
relative safety of caffeinated beer and thereby reduce injury. The study could have implications for safety-sensitive
occupations as well. It is common for people to use caffeine to counteract the sedative effects of
alcohol. If, however, the alcohol and caffeine interact to yield greater impairment in next-day performance,
workers should be aware of this, particularly if their jobs have low tolerance for error. This study, to our
knowledge, will be the first to compare the acute and residual effects of caffeinated and non-caffeinated beer
on driving performance.
Objectives: The aim of this study is to develop information about the acute and residual effects of a new
product being targeted to young adults. It is important to understand the effects of caffeinated alcoholic
beverages early on in the marketing campaign so that if they pose a greater threat to pubic health than
traditional alcoholic beverages, (1) consumers can be educated and (2) policy-making can be informed with
accurate information. We will compare the acute and residual effects on driving impairment of caffeinated
and non-caffeinated beer to each other and to placebo when participants have received sufficient alcoholic
beverage to attain a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .12 g%.
Study Design: We will conduct a placebo-controlled trial using a 2 X 2 mixed-model study design. The
within-subjects factor will be alcohol vs. placebo; the between-subjects factor will be caffeinated vs. noncaffeinated
beer.
Setting: The study will take place at the General Clinical Research Center at Boston Medical Center.
Participants: We will recruit 144 students from Boston area Universities.
Outcome Measures: Acute and residual driving impairment will be assessed using a driving simulator and
an objective measure of sustained attention/reaction time, the Psychomotor Vioilance Test (PVT).
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