Most everyone has heard of the acronym BAC but not everyone knows what it means. Keep reading to find out more about BAC, what it means, and how it can affect a DUI case. If you have been arrested for a DUI, contact Law Office of Michael L. Fell at (949) 585-9055 for a free legal consultation.

BAC Stands for Blood Alcohol Content

The acronym BAC stands for blood alcohol content. The legal limit for driving is 0.08% in California and most states, except Utah where it is just 0.05%. BAC measures blood ethanol concentration and is expressed as a percentage of ethanol in the blood in units of alcohol per volume of blood. For example, a person with a BAC of 0.1% would have 0.10 grams of alcohol for each deciliter of blood they have.

How to Lower Your BAC

Alcohol enters your blood more slowly if you eat while you are drinking or if you have eaten shortly before drinking. However, eating after you have drank will not help lower your BAC. Drinking coffee will not help lower your BAC. Alcohol leaves the bloodstream through metabolism, evaporation, and excretion. About 95% of this is done with the liver. The only way to lower your BAC is to wait.

Alcohol can be in your system hours after you stopped drinking. In addition to eating while you are drinking, spreading out your drinks and drinking water can help keep your BAC down. Once you have BAC of 0.08%, it takes about 5 hours and 20 minutes to get out of the body. In most cases, the body metabolizes alcohol at around 0.005% every twenty minutes.

A Note About Over the Counter Breathalyzer Tests

There are over the counter breathalyzer tests you can take to see if you are under the legal limit. There are two important things to know about these tests. First, they are based on post-absorption levels, which means that they assume that alcohol has been absorbed by the body. If you continue drinking, the results may be inaccurate.

Second, the results from these tests are not going to stand up in court. Meaning, if you take a test you buy at a gas station and said test says that your BAC is .07% but you are pulled over and blow a 0.08%, you cannot use the results from your own test to counteract what the police have found.

Failing a Breathalyzer is Not the End of a DUI Case

It is common for people to believe that if they are pulled over for a DUI and they fail a breathalyzer, their only option is to plead guilty. This is false. The reality is that an experienced criminal defense attorney may be able to help you. If you are in this position, contact Law Office of Michael L. Fell at (949) 585-9055 now to request your free legal consultation.