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As the host of a party, you are partially responsible for the welfare of your guests. And at parties where alcohol is being served, the possibility for a guest to attempt to drive home drunk is very great. As a host and as a responsible person, you should make sure that this does not happen. Following are some tips for party givers.
Collect your guests' car keys as they enter. When they leave, they will have to go to you to get them. At this point, make sure they have not been drinking before giving them the keys. Also make sure that the person you give the keys to ends up being the person that drives the car. Offer alternatives to people who have been drinking and have no ride. Try to get them a ride with a sober guest. Tell them they can pick up their car later. Offer them a taxi ride and pick up the tab yourself. If necessary, let drunk guests spend the night at your house, and drive home the next day when they have sobered up. If you feel like really going out of the way for your guests, you can drive them home yourself after the party is over. Just remember that friends don't let friends drive drunk. If you are going to be serving alcohol, there are some ways that you can help keep guests' BAC down. But remember, contrary to popular belief, nothing can sober up a guest except time. Not coffee, not anything. These are tips to slow down the absorption of alcohol and to prevent your guests from overdrinking. Serve food before and with alcohol. Alcohol is absorbed slower when there is food in the stomach, and thus the body has more time to process the alcohol and keep your guest's BAC lower. High protein and carbohydrate foods are especially good, since they stay in the stomach longer. This includes cheese and meats. Make drinks with non-carbonated bases like fruit juice. Alcohol is absorbed faster when carbonated. Also, when making drinks, keep standard measures so that people won't overdrink. Stop serving alcohol long before the party is over. The Washington Regional Alcohol Program advises to stop serving alcoholic beverages two hours before the party stops. The more time you give your guests' bodies to process the alcohol still in their bloodstream from what they drank earlier, the less intoxicated they will be when the party is over. During this time period, you can serve non-alcoholic beverages, such as coffee. Do not serve only alcoholic beverages. Not everybody wants to drink. Also, do not force drinks on your guests. Some will accept more than they actually care to drink, in order to be polite. But even if you follow these tips to the letter, your guests are not guaranteed to be sober enough to drive home. You should encourage or even enforce the designated driver system. Remember, even one drink can affect your driving ability.
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