If you regularly bring a car, make sure that you always get enough sleep, as ScienceDaily.com reports that young drivers who skip their Zs are more prone to vehicle crashes.

Researcher Alexandra L. C. Martiniuk from The George Institute of Global Health in Sydney Australia analyzed survey data from 19,327 young drivers between 17 to 24 years old, and compared it with the number of reported car crash incidents during the study duration.

The results showed that those who slept less than six hours a night had greater chances of being in a road accident as compared with those who slept more. The increase in risk can be attributed to sluggish motor responses due to the lack of proper rest. Interestingly, these crashes seemed to happen often between 6:00 A.M. and 8:00 P.M.

So if you’re behind the wheel, whether on a regular workday drive or a weekend out-of-town trip, make sure that you have had enough sleep. This will help keep your body awake and alert–two things that are very important for your safety on the road.

(Photo by batrax via Flickr Creative Commons)