Limit cell phone use because of the possible risk of cancer.

On November 5, 2009, the FCC released their Consumer Facts on “Wireless Devices and Health Concerns.” In this document, the FCC recommends precautions for the use of cell phones.

According to the FCC, “Recent reports by some health and safety interest groups have suggested that wireless device use can be linked to cancer and other illnesses. These questions have become more pressing as more and younger people are using the devices, and for longer periods of time.”

They now recommend the following steps:

• Use an earpiece or headset
• If possible, keep wireless devices away from your body when they are on, mainly by not attaching them to belts or carrying them in pockets
• Use the cell phone speaker to reduce exposure to your head
• Consider texting rather than talking
• Buy a wireless device with lower Specific Absorption Rate (SAR)

Source:  FCC November 5, 2009

News from the U of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute

The warning from Dr. Ronald B. Herberman, director of the U of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, is contrary to previous studies that don’t find a link between cancer and cell phone use, and a public lack of worry by the FDA.  Herberman says his warning is based on early unpublished data. He argues that people should take action now — especially when it comes to children.

“Really at the heart of my concern is that we shouldn’t wait for a definitive study to come.  The greatest risk is that children’s use of cell phones increases childhood brain cancer.”

Dr. Joseph Mercola’s response to the above news

Dr. Mercola wrote, “Dr. Herberman’s complete article, which was sent out with his advisory, includes a summary analysis of the recent studies that form the basis of his decision to issue precautionary measures. It also includes an illustration, showing just how much higher the absorption rates are in a 5- and 10-year olds’ brain versus that of an adult. It’s an impressive visual, showing how electromagnetic radiation can penetrate almost straight through the entire brain of a 5-year old child.  As far as I’m concerned, the signs that we’re looking at a major public health problem are overwhelming.”

News from Europe

Another noted brain cancer authority who has recently voiced his concerns is Australian Dr Vini Gautam Khurana.  He is a Mayo Clinic-trained neurosurgeon with an advanced neurosurgery Fellowship in cerebral vascular and tumor microsurgery. In February 2008, Dr. Khurana issued a paper titled:  Mobile Phones and Brain Tumors after 14 months of independent research, reviewing more than 100 sources of recent medical and scientific literature.

Says Dr. Khurana, “In the context of the fact that widespread mobile phone usage commenced in the mid-1980s (earliest in Northern Europe), with the first 10 years of widespread usage ending in the mid-1990s, and the fact that solid tumors may take several years to trigger and form, it seems plausible to expect that if no appropriate changes are made by Industry and consumers alike, in the next 5  – 10 years the aforementioned concerning associations will likely be definitely proven in the medical literature.”

He goes on to say: “Given the calculated “incubation time” and the commencement of mobile telephony’s mass deployment in Sweden, it is no surprise that Swedish researchers were among the first to report a positive association between cell phone use and brain tumor risk.”

Resource Center:

• USATODAY article Cancer institute warns of cell phone risks
• Dr. Joseph Mercola’s response to the news
• CNet quote from Dr. Herberman

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