Life

Don't become another victim of nomophobia

THERE'S no getting away from the fact that smartphones have made our lives a lot easier.

We use them to do our banking, shop, keep in touch with distant family and friends as well as being able to stay more connected with what's happening in the world.

But have smartphones actually taken over our lives?

Truth be told, so many of us have soared way past dependence and are almost verging on addiction to our smartphones.

And there's even a name for it - nomophobia - short for 'no mobile phone phobia'.

Basically it's what researchers are now calling that anxious feeling you get when you misplace your mobile or your phone battery dies.

For those of you who do not believe that something like this is true, there's a 20 question test that allows you to self-diagnose.

The questionnaire is designed to measure a person's anxiety over being separated from their phone.

It looks at the way a person responds to statements including: 'If I were to run out of credits or hit my monthly data limit, I would panic' and 'If I could not check my smartphone for a while, I would feel a desire to check it'.

The researchers interviewed 300 undergraduates in America, asking them how they felt when separated from their mobile.

They identified four characteristics of smartphone separation anxiety - not being able to communicate, losing connectedness, not being able to access information and giving up convenience.

Basically they found that people feel insecure when they can't text or call their friends and family and feel disconnected from their online identity.

They also feel inadequate when they can't access information, such as

searching for answers to questions via Google.

Women are almost four times more likely to experience nomophobia than men but it's not known why.

They pinpointed the symptoms of this condition as being unable to turn off your phone, obsessively checking it, constantly topping up the battery and taking your mobile to the bathroom.

It appears at times that most of us suffer from this so-called 'addiction' - we are so attached to our mobile devices that going through the day without one can be a serious challenge.

Just think to yourself, when was the last time you picked up an actual map? Or when did you post someone a letter?

For many, their smartphone

dependency has become so intense that, without their devices, they can no longer function properly.

If you are one of those struggling with nomophobia, here's a few health problems that researchers have pinpointed that might make you realise how your smartphone can detrimentally affect your life.

More and more people are found to be squinting whenever they look at their smartphones, which results in their eyes becoming strained. Smartphones have been linked to both sleep deprivation and concentration problems. Or there's the 'text neck' syndrome, which develops from the pressure and stress that texting and using a smartphone puts on your neck.

Then, wait until you hear this one -one in six smartphones have been found to have E. coli, contracted when consumers bring their smartphones with them to the toilet. Away from the health problems an even bigger issue is that smartphones are distracting us and quite simply we don't know any more how to be bored. Smartphones offer us a distraction that kills time.

While we might want to believe that our smartphone addiction represents an actual medical problem, maybe we need to remember the old saying, 'too much of anything isn't good for you'. So while smartphones are clearly useful and often indispensible, we also have to learn when to take some time off.

Does this sort of technology improve our lives? Definitely, but maybe at times we should show a little self-control.