Risks of using the phone while walking

Risks of 

using the phone while walking

A recent study of university students found that a quarter of people 

crossing road junctions used their phones.

"I don't think people realize how distracted they are and how much their

 circumstantial consciousness changes when they walk and use the phone,"

 said Wayne Giang, assistant professor of engineering at the University of Florida.

In fact :

our devices can cause what some experts call "unintended blindness.

The screen in your hands can change your mood, the way you walk

 and the position of your body.

When we walk and use the phone at the same time, we reflexively adjust 

how we move, Giang said. Video footage of pedestrians showed people using

 phones walking about 10% slower than their non-distracted counterparts.

Patrick Crawley :

project manager at the Technical University of Denmark

who studied the biomechnics of walking while using the phone

 said:

 "You see a number of changes in walking that reflect the slowdown. 

People take shorter steps and spend more time with both feet on the ground. "

These changes

 can hinder curbside traffic.

Looking at the smartphone while walking, rather than standing straight

can also increase the load or strength on the neck and upper back muscles. "

How does this affect your mood?

One experiment found that the more people use the phone while walking on

 the treadmill, the higher the levels of cortisol, the stress hormone.

A 2023 study

 examined the psychological effects of walking in an outdoor

 park while looking at the phone.

Elizabeth Broadbent

 a study participant and professor of health psychology

 said: 

"Generally speaking, when people go for a walk, they feel better afterwards

and that's what we saw in the walking group without using the phone."

She added: 

"In walking groups with phone use, these effects have been reversed.

 Instead of feeling more positive after walking, people felt less positive. "

The negative effects are due to declining contact with the surrounding

 environment.

Dispersed walking risks

Most of us realize that walking with phone use can be risky.

Dr. Giang's studies examined the relationship between "telephone-related

 dispersed walks" and visits to the emergency department.

Nearly 30 thousand injuries were detected while walking from phones. 

While many of these incidents occurred on the streets and sidewalks

 almost a quarter occurred at home.