Blood Testing Vs Breath Testing: How Do They Differ?
Alcohol can greatly affect a person's nervous system; thus, it impairs ones judgment and decision-making.
Driving while intoxicated can lead to serious and fatal results, including property damages, injury, and death.
Drinking alcohol can affect a person's driving skills and it makes the driver more prone to engage in risky behaviors.
For this reason, alcohol has been noted to be the most common cause of vehicular collisions, and collisions involving pedestrians.
Those who have been involved in such cases have had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) beyond the legal limit- which is 0.
05 in most countries.
If you have been drinking, and you are pulled over by a police officer for DUI, the officer will ask you to take a breath test or submit to a blood test to measure your BAC.
The BAC reading is one of the most significant pieces of evidence that the prosecution will use against you in proving that you were driving while intoxicated.
Whether you choose to take a breath test or a blood test, it is vital to understand what these tests measure, how it is taken and how it can affect your BAC result.
What Is The Difference Between Blood And Breath Tests? Today, police officers have devices known as breathalyzer, which is an equipment that reads the BAC level through the driver's breath.
The breathalyzer is readily available which makes it easier for officers to directly measure the BAC level of suspected drunk drivers.
This test indirectly measures the BAC through the driver's breath then estimates the level of alcohol based on average ratios.
However, this testing method can be contended since it is not as accurate as a blood test.
A blood test is much more accurate; thus, if you have undergone a breath test and it shows that your BAC level is beyond the limit, you can request a blood test.
This test is done at a health care clinic by a professional medical provider.
The medical provider will take a blood sample to test your blood alcohol content.
Remember though that a blood alcohol test will measure the alcohol level in your blood at the time that the sample was taken, not the time you were driving.
If you have been drinking, you must realize that your BAC will go up as time passes; thus, it will be at its highest an hour after you have consumed the alcoholic drinks.
Challenging A Blood Test Blood tests are typically more accurate; however, the blood sample can be contaminated if it is left in the lab for long hours.
This may cause fermentation and increase your alcohol levels.
Another disadvantage is if the blood coagulates, it will result to a higher alcohol level.
Additionally, human errors can also affect your BAC reading.
For this reason, a lot of drivers who have been charged of DUI challenge the results with the help of their lawyers.
Driving while intoxicated can lead to serious and fatal results, including property damages, injury, and death.
Drinking alcohol can affect a person's driving skills and it makes the driver more prone to engage in risky behaviors.
For this reason, alcohol has been noted to be the most common cause of vehicular collisions, and collisions involving pedestrians.
Those who have been involved in such cases have had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) beyond the legal limit- which is 0.
05 in most countries.
If you have been drinking, and you are pulled over by a police officer for DUI, the officer will ask you to take a breath test or submit to a blood test to measure your BAC.
The BAC reading is one of the most significant pieces of evidence that the prosecution will use against you in proving that you were driving while intoxicated.
Whether you choose to take a breath test or a blood test, it is vital to understand what these tests measure, how it is taken and how it can affect your BAC result.
What Is The Difference Between Blood And Breath Tests? Today, police officers have devices known as breathalyzer, which is an equipment that reads the BAC level through the driver's breath.
The breathalyzer is readily available which makes it easier for officers to directly measure the BAC level of suspected drunk drivers.
This test indirectly measures the BAC through the driver's breath then estimates the level of alcohol based on average ratios.
However, this testing method can be contended since it is not as accurate as a blood test.
A blood test is much more accurate; thus, if you have undergone a breath test and it shows that your BAC level is beyond the limit, you can request a blood test.
This test is done at a health care clinic by a professional medical provider.
The medical provider will take a blood sample to test your blood alcohol content.
Remember though that a blood alcohol test will measure the alcohol level in your blood at the time that the sample was taken, not the time you were driving.
If you have been drinking, you must realize that your BAC will go up as time passes; thus, it will be at its highest an hour after you have consumed the alcoholic drinks.
Challenging A Blood Test Blood tests are typically more accurate; however, the blood sample can be contaminated if it is left in the lab for long hours.
This may cause fermentation and increase your alcohol levels.
Another disadvantage is if the blood coagulates, it will result to a higher alcohol level.
Additionally, human errors can also affect your BAC reading.
For this reason, a lot of drivers who have been charged of DUI challenge the results with the help of their lawyers.
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