Common Misconceptions

A common misconception is that sleeping quickens alcohol’s ‘wear off’ time.  According to research conducted by Road Safety charity ‘Brake’, one in five drivers admit to driving the morning after they drank a lot the night before.

“Many drivers who would not consider driving after a night in the pub fail to recognise the influence of alcohol on their body the next day, or simply choose to ignore its effects,” says Alice Granville, policy and research analyst from the Institute of Advanced Motoring. “Drivers need to take responsibility and use alternative means of transport after a heavy night drinking.”

Can I sleep it off or speed up the process?

Sleeping has no effect on the passing of alcohol, it all depends on the individual to know how long it takes for alcohol to clear through the system,  but in general, alcohol is removed from the blood at the rate of about one unit an hour.

You cannot speed the process of alcohol passing through the system. There are many mechanisms at work when your body passes alcohol, all of which depend on the individual, so it may take longer for some. The process can take longer if your liver is damaged or not working normally.

If you know you will be driving the morning after stop drinking alcohol well before the end of the night so your body has time to process it before the following morning.