Self-Test for Breath Alcohol

Alcohol, Breath Test

Why It Is Done

The breath alcohol self-test is used to estimate your blood alcohol concentration (BAC). The results can help you decide whether it is safe to drive. This estimate of blood alcohol is not intended to represent your actual driving abilities. Your driving may be impaired even with a low BAC level, such as below 0.05.

The breath alcohol test offers one piece of information to help you make a safe decision about drinking and driving. The safest decision is always not to drive if you have been drinking.

BAC is commonly used by police and other legal authorities to determine whether a person is legally impaired and should not drive. A blood alcohol concentration in the range of 0.05 to 0.10 is considered legally impaired throughout most of the United States. But legal BAC levels vary from state to state.

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Author:	Jeannette Curtis	Last Updated: May 9, 2008
Medical Review:	Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine R. Steven Tharratt, MD, MPVM, FACP, FCCP - Pulmonology, Critical Care, Medical Toxicology
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