The other night I had just got the baby settled and decided to have a cup of tea. I had just poured it and was about to drink it when it slipped out of my hand and landed in my lap! I screamed, scarring the baby and waited for a ride to the hospital to deal with the burns. This got me thinking, what is this happened while driving!?

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When you think about how many people drive the roads everyday while drinking a hot (or cold) beverage the numbers are staggering. This is another form of distracted driving and believe it or not law enforcement is cracking down on things like this as well. Anything that causes you to shift your focus from the road is considered distracted driving.

A local ordinance in Huron, South Dakota, prohibits distracted driving. The law defines “distracted driving” as “inattentive driving while operating a moving motor vehicle that results in the unsafe operation of the vehicle.” This includes reading, grooming, “or engaging in any other activity which causes distractions” — even eating pizza.

New Jersey is also considering expanding its distracted driving ban to include eating while driving. Similar to Huron’s law, the bill would prohibit “any activity unrelated to the actual operation of a motor vehicle in a manner that interferes with … safe operation,”.

It is easy to see how eating or having coffee or a soda while driving could cause an accident. It has happened before: In one case, a commercial truck driver choked on spicy pork rinds and lost control of his vehicle; luckily, he suffered only minor injuries and did not hit any other vehicles.

These are just some thoughts to chew on, as always DRIVE SAFE!!!