Hands-free Devices are Dangerous While Driving

Talking on a hands-free device can lead to a person making serious errors, a new study reported.   

The study was conducted by researchers from the University of Alberta who found that drivers using hands-free devices had more instances of changing lanes without signaling, crossing the center line and speeding when compared with drivers who weren't using any such devices. Alberta introduced a ban on talking on handheld phones while driving in 2009, but there is no rule against talking on hands-free devices while driving.

A recent study had found that using a hands-free device or texting on phone while driving is just as dangerous as driving after drinking alcohol.

"It is commonplace knowledge, but for some reason it is not getting into the public conscience that the safest thing to do while driving is to focus on the road," said Mayank Rehani from the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine at University of Alberta and one of the researchers of the study

For the study, researchers used near infrared spectroscopy to assess the brain activity of drivers when they were driving with and without talking on a hands-free device. The study included 26 participants who had completed a course in driving using the Virage VS500M driving simulator at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital.

The participants were tested twice; first was the control condition where they had to drive in a busy street with no telecommunication device and the second was the test condition where they had to drive while talking on a hands-free device. The conversation lasted for two-minutes and wasn't emotionally charged.

The research team found that when people talked on hands-free devices, their brain activity increased.  There was a significant increase in oxyhemoglobin in the brain, with a simultaneous drop in deoxyhemoglobin, showing that the brain was very active, researchers reported.

"The findings also indicated that blood flow to the brain is significantly increased during hands-free telecommunication in order to meet the oxygen demands of the neurons under the 'distracted' condition," said Yagesh Bhambhani, a professor in the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University, according to a press release.