Cellphone users told to cut down use
CHILDREN and heavy users of mobile phones have been given a warning to cut down on their call time for the sake of their health.
However, the warning from France’s health watchdog is being dismissed by Kiwi experts, who say there is not enough evidence yet to justify any government intervention.
France’s National Agency for Health, Food and Environmental Safety this week issued recommendations that children and heavy users limit their time on mobile phones. It defined heavy use as 40 minutes of conversation a day.
Radio-frequency radiation transmitted from wi-fi networks and cellphones has long been a cause of concern.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies cellphones as a ‘‘possible’’ cause of cancer, after scientists have been unable to conclusively rule one way or the other.
New Zealand cybersecurity consultant Chris Hails, of NetSafe, said the question of exposing children to possible health risks from cellphones was ‘‘another one of those modern parenting dilemmas’’.
He did not believe Kiwis would welcome any heavy-handed government guidelines on mobile usage. ‘‘My personal opinion is that most people would be quite appalled if the government started issuing edicts – I guess it comes down to personal responsibility.’’
Many parents, by simply limiting their children to a text-only mobile plan, were not only saving money, but were waylaying any possible health risks, he said. ‘‘Our standard advice around mobile devices is normally . . . set a limit that you feel comfortable with.’’
The French recommendations were issued after a panel of 16 experts weighed up more than 300 recent scientific studies. While it concluded there was ‘‘no proven effect’’ on health, several studies suggested that talking on mobiles led to a higher long-term risk of brain cancer.
New Zealand’s Ministry of Health has no similar recommendations on cellphone use.
Associate Minister for Health Jo Goodhew has asked officials to look into the French agency’s guidelines, to see if they hold any relevance for New Zealand.
The ministry notes on its website that children would be more susceptible if mobile phones were found to be a health risk, as their brains were still developing.
Such potential risk factors have led to an international study to be conducted over the next two years and involving Massey University. It would look at whether cellphones were a risk factor in young patients with brain cancers, researcher Amanda Eng said.
‘‘Adolescents and children are starting to use cellphones earlier, and therefore potentially have a longer exposure [over their lifetime].’’
The French recommendations on heavy mobile use could have a significant impact on businesses, Employers and Manufacturers Association spokesman Gilbert Peterson said.
‘‘For a lot of businesses, cellphones are an everyday tool.
‘‘The health authorities need to establish the case that the risk is real before anything happens,’’ he said.