Chattanooga Times Free Press

Long-term risks of cellphone use unknown

-

DEAR DOCTOR: I always thought the worries about the safety of cellphones were a bit overblown, but now I’m reading about new guidelines concerning cellphone radiation. Just what’s so dangerous? And is looking at the screen as risky as using the phone to make calls?

DEAR READER: The conversati­on regarding mobile phones and potential health hazards has been going on for decades. Ever since the first public cellular phone call was placed in 1973 (!) on a Motorola prototype the size of a meatloaf, it seemed inevitable that questions about the safety of the technology would follow.

The topic returned to the news cycle late last year after California’s Department of Public Health published advice to consumers that advised them how to reduce their exposure to the radio frequency (RF) energy of the cellphone ecosystem. At no point does the document, which runs three pages, come right out and state that cellphones are harmful. However, it does discuss how cellphone technology works and why questions about the short- and long-term safety of exposure to RF are important to pursue.

When your cellphone is turned on, it’s using RF energy to communicat­e with nearby cellphone towers. When the phone chats with a cell tower, the RF energy “sprays” in all directions from the device’s antenna, including into the head and body of the person using, or close to, the phone. While RF is not as powerful as other forms of electromag­netic radiation, such as X-rays, which can cause damage at a cellular level, when it comes to studies regarding the effects of RF energy, the jury is still out.

Here are some suggestion­s to reduce exposure:

› Use the speaker or a headset to talk, rather than holding the phone close to your head.

› Text rather than talk.

› When streaming a video, hold the phone away from the body.

› Carry the phone in a purse or a backpack, not in a pocket.

› Keep the phone away from your bed at night.

› Remember that a cellphone emits more RF energy when it’s showing fewer bars on its display; this is because it’s trying harder to connect.

 ??  ?? Dr. Eve Glazier
Dr. Eve Glazier

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States