Let’s all be honest with ourselves. Drinking is a reality of college and a lot of times, college students do not always make the best decisions. Driving after a long night of partying or hanging out at the bars may seem like a good idea, especially if you think you’ve sobered up in the early hours of the morning, but nothing beats a second opinion. Enter the pocket breathalyzer.
What is a pocket breathalyzer?
Pocket breathalyzers are portable devices that measure your blood alcohol content (BAC) level. They let you know how much you’ve had or if you’ve simply had too much.
How much does it cost?
The cheapest kind attach to key chains and are about $8. The kind that you can install in your car cost quite a bit more. Those range from a few hundred dollars to over $1,000, but add the benefit of preventing your car from starting if your BAC is over the legal limit.
How does it work?
Portable breathalyzers work just like police breathalyzers. You blow on the mouthpiece and wait for the results. Usually a light will indicate whether you are under the legal limit or not. Some have red, yellow and green lights to let you know where you stand.
For college students who do not have a lot of money, the small cost of a pocket breathalyzer may be well worth it to prevent the huge expense, pain and inconvenience of an accident, a DUI or, especially in Davis, a BUI.
NICOLE NOGA can be reached at science@theaggie.org.
