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The number of pedestrians who have been killed or
injured while wearing headphones has more than tripled in six years,
according to a new study.
Researchers gathered information on 116 vehicle accidents in the United
States involving pedestrians wearing headphones. More than two-thirds of
the victims were male and under 30 years old.
"Everybody is aware of the risk of cell phones and texting in
automobiles, but I see more and more teens distracted with the latest
devices and headphones in their ears," lead author Dr. Richard
Lichenstein, an emergency room physician at University of Maryland
Hospital for Children, said in a statement.
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More teens use headphones
Researchers reviewed cases of pedestrian injuries and deaths in national
news reports and databases that were reported between 2004 and 2011.
They included accidents where the pedestrian was wearing headphones but
excluded cases where the device being used was a cellphone.
They found the number of yearly accidents involving headphones increased
from 16 in 2004 to 2005, to 47 in 2010 to 2011.
More than half of the vehicles involved in the accidents were trains.
Lichenstein said that based on the data they collected, it's not clear
whether these pedestrians were crossing train tracks or fell on the
tracks.
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About a third of the vehicles' drivers reported sounding a horn as a
warning before the crash.
Nearly 70 percent of the 116 accidents resulted in deaths. About 90
percent of the accidents occurred in large cities.
Researchers also found that pedestrians tended to be young. More than a
third were younger than 18 years old, and two-thirds were younger than
30.
Lichenstein and colleagues acknowledged that the increase could partly
be due to increased media reporting of accidents involving youths, as
well as fewer opportunities for young people to drive vehicles.
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"Teenagers may not be as experienced or as conscious of their
surroundings, and they're just zoning in on their music," Lichenstein
said.
Distraction can put you at risk
Two likely reasons why headphone use is linked with vehicle injuries and
deaths are distraction and sensory deprivation, according to study
authors.
Distraction caused by the use of handheld devices can cause "inattentional
blindness," which reduces people's mental attention to their
surroundings.
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Headphone wearers can also experience sensory deprivation, in which a
person's ability to hear a train or a car horn is blocked by sounds
coming from the device.
"Not only are you distracted, but you can't physically hear, which can
put you at risk," Lichenstein said.
He said that because electronic devices such as mobile phones and MP3
players are only becoming more popular, people should be more thoughtful
about when and where they use them.
"If you use headphones, keep the volume down, be aware of where you are,
and realize that you may not be able to hear someone warning you that
you're in harm's way," he said.
Pass it on: Wearing headphones while walking may be unsafe, especially
in areas with moving vehicles.
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