SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- A new trend is challenging people to put down their phones, but many people report feeling anxious when separated from their devices.
Called nomophobia, short for no more phone phobia, 73 percent of teens in a recent addiction study reported feeling anxious when their phones had no charge according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse for Teens.
That same study found that the teens checked their phones once every 23 minutes.
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"I have 4 kids and go to school full time, I need my phone with me," one person said on a 10News Facebook poll.
"I could go a few weeks or a month easy," another added.
New research suggests that our phones keep us in a persistent state of anxiety that’s only relieved by checking our phones Dr. Nancy Cheever told ABC News.
Her research suggests phone-induced anxiety works on a positive feedback loop.
According to a Rutgers University study, cellphone distraction in the classroom can lead to lower grades.
The report lays out how dividing your attention between your phone and real life has serious consequences on how much information you retain.
Meanwhile, Cheever warns that little is known about the long term health effects anxiety from phones could cause.
