DR. WALLACE: We have a class at our high school that deals with drug and alcohol abusers. We had a guest speaker yesterday in my class and he discussed things that drivers do and don't do when they have been drinking too much and are totally alcohol-impaired. It was a very informative presentation and I thought it would also be good to share with other teens. I thought maybe you could offer some of it to your readers. — Mitch, Philadelphia, Penn.

MITCH: Thank you for sharing this important information. I'm sure it will be helpful to many of our readers. Drinking and driving make a deadly duo, and many crashes are due to driving impairment. Sadly, it's quite often that the innocent suffer the most and often pay the supreme price in a deadly collision.

Most drivers under the influence of alcohol aren't even aware of their actions when they often:

1. Forget to put the headlights on or to dim them for oncoming cars.

2. Change speed more often and make frequent lane changes.

3. Overshoot stop signs and ignore yellow lights at intersections.

4. Drift onto shoulders or straddle the center line.

5. Pay less and less attention to the driving environment.

6. Are less able to anticipate dangers ahead.

CLOVE CIGARETTES ARE A HEALTH HAZARD

DR. WALLACE: I kept encouraging my boyfriend to stop smoking tobacco cigarettes because of the danger to his health, and mine also, from secondhand smoke. He finally did quit smoking tobacco cigarettes, but now he is smoking clove cigarettes. I'm not exactly sure what a clove cigarette is. My boyfriend said that they are made from all natural products and that they are harmless to smoke. I find it hard to believe that smoke from clove cigarettes is harmless, because smoke is from burning something, and all the smoke is sucked into the lungs whether it's from tobacco or cloves. Please help me to understand this problem. — Curious, Fremont, Nev.

CURIOUS: Your boyfriend is misinformed regarding the danger of smoking clove cigarettes, or he is trying to con you into believing they are safe so you will not "encourage" him to abandon them.

Most clove cigarettes are imported from Thailand and they were very popular over 20 years ago, but they faded from the scene and have recently attempted a comeback. More expensive than 100 percent tobacco (also a natural product) cigarettes, they are comprised of 40 percent clove and 60 percent tobacco.

Clove cigarettes have been analyzed by the Centers for Disease Control and found to be a greater health hazard than tobacco cigarettes. Just in case your boyfriend is uninformed, make sure he reads my answer.

You are 100 percent correct. Any and all smoke sucked into the lungs is dangerous to one's health!

SCRUBBING DOES NOT ELIMINATE PIMPLES

DR. WALLACE: I've started to notice a few pimples on my face and I'm really worried. I scrub my face four or five times a day, but the pimples won't go away. Please help! I have rather low self-esteem as it is, and a bad complexion will really cause me to feel bad emotionally. — Sad, St. Louis, Mo.

SAD: Excessive cleansing does not help eliminate pimples and acne. These blemishes occur below the skin's surface, where soap and water can't reach. In fact, severe scrubbing can actually inflame pimples and acne. It would be wise to visit a dermatologist. Acne and pimples can now be treated effectively with certain newly developed drugs.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. E-mail him at [email protected]. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.