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Nov 10, 2010

ROAD SAFETY * USA - Trucking Industry Healthier Than Truckers Themselves

The road to fat city


New York,NY,USA -The Daily Feed, by Justin Rohrlich -November 9, 2010: -- While trucking companies like JB Hunt and Knight Transportation are hovering near their 52-week highs, the health of the people driving those trucks is significantly less hale... Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration chief Anne Ferro, yesterday told a forum in Baltimore that "the life expectancy of a commercial driver is 16 years shorter than the norm," referencing data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention... Ferro noted that:

- Only 10% of drivers exercise regularly.
- 54% of drivers smoke tobacco, compared to 21 percent of the general population.
- 50% of drivers are overweight or obese, compared to 33% in the general population.

"We can't sustain figures like that and expect individuals to be healthy contributors to their workplaces and their families, and be safe on the roadway," Ferro said... Something to think about over your next truck stop Frito Pie... (Photo from jimadler)



*  Will  FEDS  regulate FAT truckers ?

Houston,TX,USA -Newsletter Jim Adler and Assoc, by Hugo Aguilar - (originally published on) Jun 23, 2010: -- By now, we all know it’s not healthy to be overweight. Medical reports rail against excess body fat, citing statistics that show even a few extra pounds can cause serious illnesses, from diabetes to heart ailments. Americans trying to stay healthy fight battles with their bathroom scales every day all over the United States...   But what about other people’s fat? Can it kill us too? Yes, according to sleep scientists at Harvard University. Their studies of the link between being overweight and sleep apnea have the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration considering new rules to require screening of overweight truck drivers. Harvard scientists estimate that 28 percent of commercial truck drivers on U.S. highways suffer from mild or severe sleep apnea. The disorder shuts off airways, causing them to wake up dozens, even hundreds of times every night, leaving them generally fatigued and often, grievously sleep deprived. People with sleep apnea have a tendency to nod off during normal activities. A few seconds asleep at the wheel of an 80,000 pound truck rolling down the highway could easily be fatal to nearby drivers...  While the federal government is looking seriously at new rules to curb sleep apnea in overweight truckers, it has no deadline for implementing them. Supporters say the rules could help prevent the truck accidents that kill more than 5,200 people a year and injure another 100,000. Critics say the rules could idle up to 40 percent of the truckers on American roads. Meanwhile, successful treatments for sleep apnea include a device that supplies oxygen during the night and keeps airways open, leaving truckers with sleep apnea rested and ready to go...

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