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16 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | NOVEMBER 2022 Expert organizations from the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons to the Governors Highway Safety Association have expressed concern about distracted walking, with texting being one of the reasons people are distracted while walking. The human brain is simply not made to multitask. When you're doing more than one thing at a time, your brain is simply switching between tasks quickly. You can only focus on one thing at a time. That means when you walk and text, you aren't fully paying attention to either activity. And, though it may seem like you don't need all of your brain power to walk, consider just what a complex action walking is. Walking requires your brain to process visual information, while also controlling your feet and legs. How high you lift your knee, the length of your stride (watch out for that puddle!) are all part of the deceptively simple act of walking. In some ways, you're already multitasking when you walk, so adding your phone to the mix makes things really difficult. The risk of injury is dramatically greater if you walk and text than if you simply walk. You're more likely to trip, bump into something or someone, twist your ankle, or step into traffic if you're distracted while you walk. Cuts, bruises, sprains, and even fractures are a few of the types of injuries of which experts are seeing an increase. You can do some simple things to limit your risk of getting hurt while walking. For instance, practice focusing on your setting while you walk. Actively pay attention to the people, obstacles, and sounds in your surroundings. If you need to use headphones, keep the volume low enough that you can still hear the sounds of traffic around you. When you absolutely must make a call or send a text, stop walking while you do so. You probably already do this while you're driving, so training yourself to stop walking while you use your phone should be easy. ~ Danya Lynd DON'T TEXT AND WALK