Tips for Healthy Cell Phone Use
Lower Your Risk
Do cell phones pose a health risk or not? That is the perennial question that consumers all over the world wish to know. And they want results fast. The typical individual in the fast-paced, multi-tasking, 21 st century world demands speedy results. And fast results have already skewed the findings of many a “scientific” study on the topic of cell phone health risks. True scientific evidence takes years to discover. This is in direct opposition to the modern need for answers on the fly.
Should my kids be allowed to use cell phones? Evidence that proves a link between cell phone radio wave emissions and human health continues to be scientifically inconclusive. At the same time, consumer watchdog groups like Consumer Reports urges people to err on the side of caution in this respect.
Protect Your Family
The most common advice for consumers interested in cell phone health safety is:
- Use your cell phone only when necessary. If you have access to a landline, opt to use it before you reach for your wireless phone.
- Limit children’s use of cell phones and accustom them to using a headset. Research is inconclusive on any additional health risks to kids, but why not minimize potential risks?
- Invest in hands-free earpieces. Many studies suggest that the SAR (specific absorption rate) of radio frequencies is significantly reduced when the phone is further from the user’s body.
The FTC offers a few more tips for cell phone health and safety:
- In lieu of a head set make your goal to keep cell phone use brief.
- Avoid using your phone when signals are less than optimal. Weak signals increase radio frequency emissions from your phone’s antenna.
Buyer Beware: Patches, Filters, and RF Shields
There are many unscrupulous ads that will try and sell you special cell phone filters and radio wave shields. Makers of shields and filters claim to reduce your exposure to cell phone emissions. Products like these are completely untested by any authoritative sources, so, buyer beware. In 2003 the Federal Trade Commission ordered a company, Interact Communications, to either halt sales of their cell phone shield, WaveShield, or include copy in their promotional advertising that corrected inaccuracies.
The WaveShield reportedly blocked over 95 percent of cell phone radio frequencies (RFs) and directed such dangerous waves away from users’ brains. The FTC argued convincingly that the company failed to inform consumers that a cell phone’s RFs are emitted from the antenna, the part on many phones that would not be “shielded” by Interact’s product.
When it comes to health and safety your family comes first. Read our article, “Get the Right Information,” for links to sources with further cell phone safety and health information.
