SUNDAY July 13, 2008 (foodconsumer.org) -- A study sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation showed that higher gas price was linked to lower risk of deaths from car accidents.

The study by researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Harvard Medical School showed if gas remains at $4 per gallon or higher for one year, the traffic deaths could drop by more   than 1,000 per month nationwide.

For the study, Michael Morrisey from UAB and David Grabowski, Ph.D., from Harvard compared early vehicle deaths and gas prices from 1985 through 2006 and found that death rates drop significantly when people slow down and drive less.

"It is remarkable to think that a percent change in gas prices can equal lives saved, which is what our data show," Morrisey said. "For every 10 percent rise in gas prices, fatalities are reduced by 2.3 percent. The effects are even more dramatic for teen drivers."

The early results were presented in June at a health economist meeting in North Carolina.

The researchers also found that the more restrictive graduated license programs reduced traffic deaths by up to 24 percent among drivers age 15 to 17.