Although most people recognize that drinking and driving is a serious matter, it’s one of those things that people tend to get a bit, shall we say, flexible about. Sure, we read or hear accounts of someone who was pulled over with a blood alcohol level that could be confused with a major league pitcher’s ERA, but we assure ourselves that we’d never do that. That was someone else. No, just a few drinks and it’s all good.

There’s even some people who would rationalize a distinction between driving drunk, and driving while just a little buzzed. But as at least one Public Service Announcement campaign has pointed out, buzzed is still impaired. It still counts as drunk.

And so it goes, until there’s some heart-wrenching story about another death that can be traced back to a drunk driver, maybe even one who was ostensibly simply a little buzzed. Then we wring our hands and wonder what we can do to stop this.

For starters, we can become smarter about how and how much we drink. This is where modern technology and the fact that’s an app out there for just about everything, comes into play. How about a breathometer that turns your smart phone into a breathalyzer?

This app will help you regulate your drinking; now all we need is an app to prevent dumb poses

Drinking Responsibly With Your Smart Phone

No, this doesn’t mean buying a round for you and your Samsung G2. The above-mentioned breathometer is a small device that plugs into your smart phone (they have models for both Android and iOS phones). Just breathe on it like you would a breathalyzer. The included software app then estimates your blood alcohol level in about five seconds, a brief enough span of time that won’t cramp your social style.

Because You Just Never Can Be Exactly Sure

Common wisdom says that your body metabolizes roughly one drink, either a 12-ounce bottle of beer, 4-ounce glass of wine or 1-ounce shot of hard liquor, in one hour. The problem is, that’s a fact that applies only to the burn rate of the alcohol, which is exactly .016 BAC per hour.

The variable that needs to be taken into consideration is the rate at which a drinker’s BAC rises. Each person is different, and there are mitigating factors that make it so that no two people are exactly alike, despite the uniform .016 burn-off rate. For instance, heavier people can drink more, and conversely, thinner people get affected faster. Are you drinking on an empty stomach? If so, that’s a bad idea. Food in the stomach helps absorb the consumed alcohol.

By having a handy device like a breathometer, you have a clear idea of what you’ve consumed and how long it’ll be before you’re below the legal limit.

A Breathometer Let’s You Play It Safe While Still Having Fun

By using the breathometer, you can monitor and regulate your drinking, eliminating guesswork that could potentially cause problems. Remember, you can insist that you’re perfectly fine, but if a police officer pulls you over, tests you, and your BAC is high enough, you’re busted, end of story.

A simple device like this could prevent a lot of headache and heartache. Fortunately, there’s no need to put a damper on your good times. Drink responsibly, keep track of your intake, and if things get out of hand, get a cab or have a friend drive you or pick you up. And if they need to get directions, you can always find a good app for maps and such at “Best Free Android Navigation Apps.”