Cellular Country: Are Cell Phones Good or Bad?

The Possible Health Effects of Cell Phones Purpose of the Study To know the possible health effects caused by using cell phones To know if cell phones cause cancer? To answer if the risk of negative health effects from cell phones greater if you live closer to a tower? To compare the risk of negative health effects from cell phones in children and adults Energy from cell phones Radio frequency energy. Non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation. Heat that may damage the body. Can RF energy cause cancer? Biological effects caused by RF energy are a result from the heating of body tissue The effects are often referred to as "thermal" effects It has been known for many years that exposure to very high levels of RF radiation can be harmful due to the ability of RF energy to heat biological tissue rapidly (the principle by which microwave ovens cook food) Tissue damage and cancer growth in humans could occur during exposure to high RF levels because of the body's inability to cope with or dissipate the excessive heat that could be generated At relatively low levels of exposure to RF radiation (levels lower than those that would produce significant heating, which are what cell phones emit) the evidence for production of harmful biological effects is ambiguous and unproven Number of Cell Phone Users (1985-2001)

This graph shows that the number of cell phone users has dramatically increased from virtually zero users in 1985 to 110 million users in 2001. Therefore, if RF energy truly does yield harmful effects to humans, more people are going to be affected.

Factors that affect the level of exposure to RF energy Number of times of calls Length of calls Cell phone traffic Distance from nearest cell phone tower Size of the phone/antenna Sources of RF Energy Environmental Sources - broadcast antennas, medical devices, WiFi Occupational Sources - Radar installations Personal Devices - Cordless telephones, mobile phones/cell phones, bluetooth Does RF energy affect children more than adults? Children have thinner skulls and developing nervous systems. If RF energy does cause cancer, children would be at a higher risk than adults.

FDA Recommendations Limit use of cell phones Use hands-free headsets Put cell phones far from your brain Sources www.willthomas.net National Cancer Institute Fact Sheet http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/cell-phone-radiation.htm http://www.fcc.gov/