How distractions while driving can be deadly

Driving is an activity that requires total concentration and focus, being able to make sharp and quick decisions and being always alert. The slightest distraction can be fatal and very often one distraction can lead to another. These distractions are mainly in the form of getting your hands off the wheel, having your eyes roaming everywhere except on the road and being unable to think clearly. Driving safely is not important only for the driver’s safety but for other road users as well. Distractions can lead to injuries, handicaps, deaths and put third parties at risk of such events too. Though we now live in an era of multi-tasking, it is important to realise that driving is already putting the body and mind to work and further implications of other parts of the body are not needed.

Distractions can be in many forms such as:
Cell phone use
Using a cell phone whilst driving can be very dangerous because the person is concentrating more on the conversation than on the road situation. The best thing to do is to let the message go to the voice mail or if it is an important call, to simply pull over, park safely and take the call.
Eating
Whether you have skipped a meal or just want a bite of something, eating during driving obviously means that you are concentrating more on the food than on the road. It is better to stop and eat leisurely or eat before starting to drive lest you want to become the filling in a metal sandwich.
Friends and families
When there are people in the car besides the driver, they can become quite a distraction especially when it comes to gossip and other conversations that may arouse fights. It is important to remain focused on the road in any situation and kids especially must be told to behave in the car when elders are driving.
Tampering with the dials
Tuning the radio, adjusting seats or other car controls typically takes the eyes off the road and at least one hand off the wheel. Better get someone to do all that has to be done whilst you are driving or adjust everything before you start the car.
_Looking around _
Sometimes, posters or people walking around can get the attention elsewhere and reduce concentration on the roads altogether; this can be very dangerous indeed.

Other distractions that can get someone easily off the task of driving are smoking, being in a drugged state, reading, trying to work on a laptop or notebook and applying makeup. ## Teenagers and distractions
It is often seen that teenagers tend to be overconfident about their driving and do not pay as much attention as should be to the roads. They tend to be the ones most involved in car accidents as well especially when they are easily distracted by friends, music or are drunk. It is important to realise that once in the car, paying attention to the road is the most crucial thing.

Focused driving
Safe driving is a responsibility that all drivers must conform to. Distractions can be quite simple gestures but steering a 1200kg metal machine around is no joke. Drivers should always concentrate on the road, act as the situation demands, do all that has to be done before driving starts, take care of children before starting off the car, remain within speed limits and be in the right mindset to drive.