ER Doctors Point Finger at Wanton Texting
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It wasn't the bumps and bruises that surprised emergency room physicians when they started looking into the dangers of texting. It was the fatalities. "It's like walking blind," says Linda Lawrence, president of the American College of Emergency Physicians, who has heard of people stepping into moving traffic, BlackBerry in hand.
Unlike speaking on a cellphone, texting requires users to divert their eyes, Lawrence says. With data from the Pew Research Center showing that 74 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds text, Lawrence suggests that when parents buy phones for their kids, they should sit down and discuss the risks.
But, she adds, the growing number of adult users of iPhones, BlackBerrys and other handheld devices has made texting-on-the-go a risk for people of all ages.
The ACEP, which aims to educate the public on injury prevention, makes the following recommendations:
ยท Don't text while you're engaged in physical activities that require sustained attention, such as biking, inline skating and playing sports.
