Be careful when you drive home after Super Bowl parties this Sunday. A report in the New England Journal of Medicine warns there is a dramatic increase in car accidents in the hours immediately following the Super Bowl every year.
The research is based on 25 years of data from the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Researchers have found a 41% increase in the number of fatal crashes and about a 46% increase in non-fatal crashes following the game compared to non-Super Bowl Sundays.
The losing team's state reflected the highest increase in crashes, and the winning team's state showed the smallest increase in wrecks. But in all, the average is seven deaths and 600 injuries in the hours following the Super Bowl due to drinking, fatigue, distraction, and often disappointment.
No significant increase in traffic accidents was noted before kickoff and the numbers actually dropped during the game. The study is published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
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