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SALT LAKE CITY — A survey showed 20 percent of people would rather go shoeless for a week than take a break from their cellphone.
This statistic is one of many shown in a recent infographic and illustrates an ever-increasing problem called nomophobia. Nomophobia is the fear of being away from one’s phone or not being able to communicate with others through a mobile device.
The first survey of a U.K. study began in 2008 showed that 53 percent of people suffered from nomophobia, but in four years that percentage jumped to a 66 percent.
That percentage only increases with the younger demographic. Of those ages 18-24, 77 percent suffer from nomophobia, a number that has been steadily rising in recent years.
An increasing number of college students now shower with their cell phone. The average adolescent would rather lose a pinky-finger than a cell phone.
–Tim Elmore
“Among today’s high school and college students, it’s on the rise. An increasing number of college students now shower with their cell phone. The average adolescent would rather lose a pinky-finger than a cell phone. A growing percentage text or tweet instead of actually talking to others,” Tim Elmore said in a recent article for Psychology Today.
In light of the new Apple iPhone 6 being released, it is interesting to note that iPhone users seem to have an even bigger problem than the average phone user. As mentioned above, one in five people would rather go shoeless than take a week off from their phone. With iPhone users, 43 percent said they would rather go shoeless. In addition, 22 percent of "other" cellphone users said they would give up their toothbrush instead of their phone. For iPhone users, that number leaped to 40 percent.
Not only is this addiction or phobia hindering social interactions, but it has been reported more frequently over the years and could be posing a safety risk. Twenty-six percent of all car accidents are caused by cellphone use, and it was reported in 2012 that 1,150 pedestrians were sent to the emergency room for injuries related to using their cellphone and walking.
Infographic: [endnomophobia.com 
](http://endnomophobia.com/)
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