Walking and texting is something we all do now. Sometimes, a text just can’t wait, and walking and texting does seem a lot less dangerous than texting and driving.
Without delving into any commentary about how attached we are to our phones, one thing is for certain: texting and walking is dangerous.
A new study found that texting and walking, or “distracted walking,” is actually a serious problem among Americans. In fact, it’s so much a problem that it causes car accidents, which result in accidents and sprains.
The study was done by the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. A spokesman for it said, “Today, the dangers of the ‘digital deadwalker’ are growing with more and more pedestrians falling down stairs, tripping over curbs, bumping into other walkers, or stepping into traffic causing a rising number of injuries—from scrapes and bruises to sprains and fractures.”
The survey, done on 6,000 participants, surveyed people’s distracted walking habits.
More than four out of ten people have seen a distracted walking accident happen.
More than one quarter of them have been in an accident like that themselves.
The problem, it seems, lies in denial.
Because when surveyed, 74 percent of people claimed that “other people” are always distracted when they’re walking, but only 29 percent said that they do it themselves.
Similarly, 90 percent of people said other people talk on the phone while walking, but only 37 percent of those people will admit to doing it themselves.
But let’s face it: we have all walked distracted at least once.
The two groups who are the most at risk are women aged 55 or over.
Millennials, surprisingly, are the least at risk of injury.
The AAOS says that if these people must walk distracted, it’s best to look up from your phone every once in a while, or keep your music at a low volume. And if you must walk distracted, they say, at least don’t jaywalk.
