While social media platforms have become a valuable tool in marketing and networking, some are finding they have a hard time if they need to step away from Facebook or Twitter for too long. Is it possible this platform has created a whole new type of addict? According to a Computer World piece, a new study has examined the phenomenon.

Retrevo, a consumer electronics shopping and review site recently released this study of 1,000 Americans that showed that many people appear to be obsessed with trading information with friends, family and co-workers.

Andrew Eisner, Retrevo’s director of Community and Content, noted that the Retrevo Gadgetology study showed that 48 percent of those polled say they update Facebook or Twitter during the night or as soon as they wake up. Another 19 percent of people under the age of 25 say they update Facebook or Twitter any time they happen to wake up in the middle of the night and 11 percent over the age of 25 do the same thing.

The study also found that 42 percent of these participants check Facebook or Twitter first thing in the morning. In fact, 28 percent of iPhone users say they do it before they even get out of bed.

“Among social media users, it appears almost half are so involved with Facebook and Twitter that they check in the first thing in the morning,” said Eisner in the report. “With 16% of social media users saying this is how they get their morning news, could we be witnessing the first signs of social media services beginning to replace Good Morning America as the source for what’s going on in the world?”

While Retrevo representatives highlight they are not qualified to declare this a societal issue, they do point to the fact that almost half of social media users are waking up in the middle of the night to interact – it is worth investigating for the possibility of an addiction.