Personally, there is no way that I could give up my pasta. But for many, one way to shed some unwanted pounds is with the low carb diet. A low carb diet consists of limiting the intake of carbohydrates usually found in sugar, breads, and pastas. Low carb dieters typically replace the intake of the carbohydrates with foods high in fat and protein such as meat, fish, nuts, and cheese. Dieters will also often eat other low carb foods such as vegetables and fruits.
So at this point, you might be asking yourself, “What does any of this have to do with DUIs?” In addition to a slimmer figure, the diet can also cause a false reading on a breathalyzer.
When a person goes on the low carb diet, their body goes into a state of “ketosis.” During ketosis, the body turns to fat burning for energy (hence, the purpose of the diet). The molecules generated during this process are called ketones. Ketones create isopropyl alcohol.
When a person consumes alcoholic beverages, they are consuming ethanol. For the breathalyzer, ethanol and isopropyl alcohol might as well be the same thing. For the dieter, they couldn’t be more different, especially if the dieter is suspected of driving under the influence. If the dieter submits to a roadside breathalyzer, it is possible that the breathalyzer will detect the isopropyl alcohol instead of ethanol and produce a false-positive blood alcohol content level. The false-positive blood alcohol reading can, in turn, lead to a wrongful DUI arrest.
While a dieter may look slimmer for their booking photo, they shouldn’t have to take the booking photo in the first place.
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