Kids Talk on Cell Phones, Walk Into Traffic

Kids on cell phones are more likely to step into traffic, according to a new study. The results of the study, by the University of Alabama, were published in the journal Pediatrics.

According to the study, one third of Americans between the ages of 8 and 12 have a cell phone. By the end of next year, it's expected that one half of "tweens" will carry one.

When I was 8 I could barely use a rotary telephone, never mind a cell phone.

The study tracked 77 kids as they navigated a virtual street crossing. The kids walked through the simulation 12 times, six with the phone and six without. Kids talking on the phone were 43 percent more likely to step into oncoming traffic.

According to David Schwebel, co-author of the study, the results in the simulator are validated by real-world tests.

So should you take away your tween's phone? Not according to Schwebel. Instead, just teach them to hang up the phone before crossing the street.

Perhaps the parents can take a lesson from that as well…