Anyone interested in avoiding alcohol can still enjoy their favorite beverages thanks to the many alcohol-free options that are available.
And the even better news is you can safely consume alcohol-free beer without fear of drink driving.
Thanks to the many big-name brewers and independents launching new varieties all the time, it’s no longer a case of drawing the short straw to be the designated driver.
You can still enjoy zero beers with the same great taste and drive safely.
However, there are still some technicalities when it comes to zero beers and non-alcoholic beers behind the wheel.
It’s still not the same as grabbing a Cola or Root Beer and not having to worry about driving or being breathalyzed.
So let’s look into the pros and cons of non-alcoholic beers behind the wheel.
How many non-alcoholic beers can I have before driving?
This is one question so many people have when they want to enjoy a few zero beers at a get-together or on a night out.
There is always that nervousness about getting behind the wheel because, technically, they have still had a “beer”.
Let’s look at the science behind it first.
The average beer has about 5% alcohol content (and one 12-oz beer is considered a standard “drink”).
Non-alcoholic beer generally contains about 0.5% alcohol content unless it’s marketed as a 0.0%, in which case it will contain tiny traces no more than 0.02% alcohol.
So it would take roughly 10 of your regular 0.5% “non-alcoholic” beers to equal the alcohol in one real beer.
However, your body will deal with the traces of alcohol in a low-alcohol beer before you start feeling the effects of it. And we will look more into this later.
But then, what constitutes as “drunk”?
In the U.S, depending on the state, a BAC of 0.08% or higher may be considered drunk for driving purposes.
In the UK a BAC of 0.05% is considered over the limit.
Isn’t a 0.5% beer pretty close to the limit. Do I need to stay below 1 to remain under the legal limit?
Can non-alcoholic beers bring you over the legal driving limit?
This is where it gets interesting!
Technically, how much alcohol you need to consume to reach these levels depends on factors like your gender and body weight.
An average male would need to drink 10 non-alcoholic beers in an hour, you might be over the legal limit for driving. (But you’d probably be too busy peeing to get behind the wheel.)
On the other hand, if you drink only one non-alcoholic drink an hour, even if you keep going for 10 hours (and 10 beers), you’re not going to get drunk because your liver will process the alcohol faster than it builds up in your blood stream.
In this 2012 study, 67 people refrained from consuming alcohol for a period of five days and then drank 1.5 litres of 0.4% ABV beer within the span of an hour.
The blood alcohol content of these individuals never rose higher than 0.0056%.
This is 7 times lower than the level (0.04%) at which most people begin to feel the minor effects of alcohol consumption.
So, as long as you don’t hammer through more than is seemingly possible for anyone to enjoy themselves. Your body will process the alcohol content faster than you can drink.
It’s the same as drinking too much apple juice, or pounding root beers. Your body will deal with the traces of alcohol before you start feeling the effects of it.
Can you drink non-alcoholic beer while driving in the UK?
In the UK a BAC of 0.05% is considered over the limit.
Isn’t a 0.5% beer pretty close to the limit. Do I need to stay below 1 to remain under the legal limit?
Looking at the blood ethanol concentration study from 2012, the BAC of 0.0056% is 10 times lower than the driving limit of 0.05% in the UK.
So, you can safely drive in the UK after drinking a non-alcoholic beer without feeling the effects of alcohol or getting a DUI.
Just as long as you don’t drink it right before taking a breathalyzer test.
Can you drink non-alcoholic beer while driving in the US?
In the U.S, depending on the state, a BAC of 0.08% or higher may be considered drunk for driving purposes.
Looking at this study from 2012, the BAC of 0.0056% is 14 times lower than the driving limit of 0.08% in the US.
So again, you are safe to drive after consuming a low-alcohol beer as long as you don’t have a drink right before being breathalyzed.
Is it legal to drink non-alcoholic beers while driving?
So if you were wondering – is it illegal to drink non-alcoholic beers while driving?
We’ve seen a lot of people doing it lately, and we were pretty curious, so we decided to look into this one a bit further.
We know that alcohol is a big no-no while driving, but what about non-alcoholic beers? They don’t contain any alcohol, so surely they must be fine, right?
Drinking non-alcoholic beer won’t get you arrested or get you a DUI.
They are under the legal limit, and even sugary drinks contain small traces of alcohol. So just think of it as a beery type of soda.
But we recommend you don’t do it for three reasons…
- You will probably get pulled over because it looks like a beer.
- You will have to wait 15 minutes before doing a breathalyser to be on the safe side of passing.
- You might spill it.
Just make sure your low-alcohol beers don’t contain over 0.5% alcohol, so you don’t get an open container charge.
Will non-alcoholic beer show up on a breathalyzer?
There are a lot of myths out there about what can and can’t show up on a breathalyzer. One of the most common myths is that zero beer will show up on a breathalyzer.
As we know, a low or non-alcoholic beer still can have alcoholic content in them They can be up to 0.5% abv and still constitute as non-alcoholic beer.
So that makes people quite anxious if they want to drive after enjoying a few.
The answer is no. (Within reason)
So, if you drink a low-alcohol beer right before taking a breathalyzer test, it is still possible for the traces of alcohol to show up for up to 30 minutes.
This video test carried out by Acumen Law shows that it is possible to fail a breathalyzer right after consuming a non-alcoholic beer.
Just don’t be put off by this. Just be a little more aware about when and how you enjoy your non-alcoholic beers.
And remember, it won’t impair you in any way, it’s just that traces of alcohol can appear the same way they can if you gargled an alcoholic-based mouthwash and took a breathalyzer test.