"IS YOUR CELL PHONE PUTTING YOU AT RISK?"
by Dr. Mercola
The war rages on about the safety of cell phones.
Depending on which side of the argument you listen to, there’s either nothing
to fear, or your phone is causing grave harm when it comes into close contact
with your body. Where does the real truth lie?
The year 2014 marked the first time in history that there
were officially more mobile devices than people in the world – approximately
7.2 billion.
Although significantly lower, the number of cell phone
users is forecast to reach 4.77 billion by the year 2017.
That’s a lot of cell phones and cell phone users. But
what’s even more fascinating about all these mobile devices is the behavior
that surrounds them:
·
Nearly two-thirds of U.S. adults own
a smartphone and over 250 million of them use their phones an average of six
days a week
·
The average cellphone owner checks
their phone 110 times a day, or about nine times each hour
·
A whopping 46 percent of smartphone
owners say “they couldn’t live without” their phones
·
As of December, 2015, 47 percent of
homes used only cell phones
·
More than about half of U.K. cell
phone users suffer from “nomophobia,” or the fear of being without their phone
(and the number may be even higher for American users)
Clearly, cell phones aren’t going away anytime soon. I use my
smartphone every day, too. But how I use mine most likely differs from how the
typical user uses theirs…
The Enigma of Cell Phone Safety
Most conventional experts don’t view cell phone exposure
as a problem, mainly because they only look at one component of cell phone
safety.
Their focus is on the thermal effects of cell phones and
how your body absorbs the radio frequency energy. The industry insists that
because the energy of the fields is too low to cause heating of tissues, it can’t
have any biological effect.
These thermal or tissue heating effects are measured and
assigned a rating known as SAR, which stands for Specific Absorption Rate.
SAR Ratings
Industry suggests you compare SAR ratings, but the numbers
are meaningless
When buying a wireless phone, the industry suggests you
compare ratings and purchase one with a lower rating.
Please understand that the SAR rating by itself is virtually
worthless.
The SAR level only estimates the heat from the radiation
penetrating into your head from a cell phone – just ONE component of concern!
The SAR level does not measure the risk from the
frequencies of the cell phone, the erratic pulsing and modulation of the
signals, or the magnetic fields created by the batteries.
Scientists now know that many of the effects from cell
phones are non-thermal. In other words, they occur at levels too low to cause
significant heating to tissues.
What You Need to Know About Cell Phone Radiation
The frequency of a cell phone’s waves falls between those
emitted by FM radios and those from microwave ovens, all of which are
considered “non-ionizing” forms of radiation.
When you make a call, text, or use data on your cell
phone, here’s what happens:
Your phone sends radiofrequency, or RF waves from its
antenna to nearby cell towers, and receives RF waves in return to its antenna.
If you are holding the phone next to your face, as most
people do, then about 70 percent of the energy from the antenna is absorbed
straight into your head.
As you can see from the diagram below, age makes a
difference in how much of this energy can be absorbed into the tissue. A
younger child’s skull is much thinner than an adult’s and still developing,
therefore more radiation is able to penetrate the brain.
It's not until around age 20 that your brain is fully
developed.
These visual images should serve as a powerful reminder to
parents that it’s never a good idea to allow a child to talk on a cell phone
held close to the head!
As you move your cell phone away from your head, this
radiation decreases rapidly. So, clearly, the further away from your body you
can keep your phone, the better.
Incidentally, the manufacturer of one of the top-selling
cell phones advises against direct body contact with their phones. This is what
they say right on their website:
“To reduce exposure to RF energy, use a hands-free option,
such as the built-in speakerphone, the supplied headphones, or other similar
accessories. Carry phone at least 5mm away from your body to ensure exposure
levels remain at or below the as-tested levels.”
One of the most important bits of advice I can give you is
to avoid holding your phone directly against your head, especially while your
call connects—which is when the power surge is greatest.
Using your speakerphone function or a safe headset to keep
your phone a safe distance away from your body is a much better option.
How Cell Phones Impact Your Cells’ Energy Centers – Your
Mitochondria
Mitochondria Cell Phones Impact
Your body uses electrical fields to communicate between
your cells. The electromagnetic fields emitted by the phones are far more
damaging to your body because they interfere with your body’s own cellular
communication.
Another major way cell phones can potentially impact you
is through their effect on your mitochondria within your cells.
Most of your cells have several hundred mitochondria. Over
90% of the energy that your body needs to function properly comes from the
mitochondria, so their well-being is essential to your energy production.
Not only are they your body’s primary source of energy,
your cells’ mitochondria determine the speed at which your body ages. If your
mitochondria are working optimally, your body ages at a normal rate.
Researchers have discovered that the radiation from cell
phones can harm your mitochondria, including flipping certain genes within the
mitochondria.
As important as your mitochondria are to your health, this
potential damaging effect on genes is very concerning to me.
Is the Newest Technology Any Safer?
Industry tries to assure us that third and fourth
generation cell phones are safer in terms of non-ionizing radiation.
But are they really?
There’s no proof that 3G or 4G is any safer, and if
anything, the preliminary research suggests they may be even less safe.
Here’s the problem…
Today’s standards for radio frequency emissions weren’t
designed for cell phones.
Rather, the current federal standards were developed to
guard against thermal effects, but remember, as I explained above, that’s not
the issue. As we’ve already seen, most of the studies on cell phones show
non-thermal effects.
What’s worrisome now is that evidence is suggesting
exposure to cell phone radiation can have biological effects without raising
temperature.
Radio frequency waves from cell phones have also been
shown to produce “stress” proteins in human cells, proteins that the body
produces for self-protection.
I agree that getting rid of your cell phone is probably
not an option these days. Today's cell phones are much more than phones –
they’re often your camera, video recorder, hand-held computer, and your
lifeline to staying in touch with your work and family.
But with all this distressing data and questionable
research, there must be something we can do to help minimize exposure. I
believe there is…
How to Minimize Cell Phone Radiation Emissions
So what can you do to make cell phone usage safer for
yourself and your family?
First and foremost, I recommend you consider not allowing
your child or pre-teen to have a cell phone.
For teens, I encourage you to educate them on the dangers
of holding or storing a cell phone close to their bodies and to remind them to
use a safe headset if they need to make a call.
And, no one should ever use one while driving, including
texting.
Here are some additional suggestions for minimizing your
exposure to cell phone radiation:
- · Reduce your cell phone usage. Turn your phone off when you don’t need it.
- · Use your cell phone on speakerphone whenever possible. Avoiding contact with your head is the most important safeguard you can take.
- · Keep your phone as far away from your body as possible. There's a significant drop-off in radiation exposure for every inch your phone is away from your body. Don’t stow your cell phone in your pocket!
- · Don’t place your phone against your head while the call is connecting. This is when your phone is sending out its strongest signal and you don’t want this surge of radiation penetrating your head!
- · Use a landline at home and at work. Just because everyone else goes cordless, you don’t need to.
- · Avoid using your cell phone if reception is poor. The weaker the reception, the more power your phone uses to transmit, and the more exposure you receive.
- · Limit cell phone use in your car. The metal parts of your car – the roof, doors, and chassis can magnify the radiation. Plus your phone has to work harder and increase its transmitting strength as you travel between cell towers.
- · If you must make a call unprotected, limit it to less than two minutes. Radiation exposure is dose-related. The longer you spend on your phone, the more potentially harmful microwave radiation you’re exposed to.
- · Use low power Bluetooth® technology or a headset to keep your phone away from your body. But just remember that if you use your Bluetooth® or headset a lot, you are still exposed to radiation right near your head.
- · For the ultimate in safety, use an air tube headset that’s specially designed to reduce cell phone radiation. In just a minute, I’ll tell you about the one I use.
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