Summary
In a 2017 safety test commissioned by CBC News Canada, it was discovered that normal cell phone use results in dangerous tumor causing radiation exposure that exceeds the safety guidelines. When mobile phones are placed in a pocket, essentially against the body, radiation emissions were 300% to 400% greater than if phones are 1/4″ (5 mm) away from the body. Some cell phones are only tested to be safe at a distance of 1/2″ or greater. Apple phones are tested at 1/4″ distance. The video below shows the full report from CBC News.
Worst Case Scenario
As you’ll see in the video, for the ‘worst case scenario’ the phone is tested while not in a phone call, and at least in the video, the phone seems to have a full 5-bars of signal reception. A phone with a strong signal, that’s not in use, will undoubtedly be emitting much lower RF than a phone being used.
A mobile phone can get very hot when talking for a long time in an area with poor reception, and the battery is drained rapidly. This is because the phone is boosting it’s RF output to reach the cell tower. It’s not clear from the test performed in the video if such extreme conditions were actually tested, although the technician says the testing was for a worst case scenario. The video shows a phone at the “Hola” welcome screen as it’s being placed in position for testing and there’s no indication that a lengthy phone call was made.
In addition to cell phone RF, electronic devices emit WiFi RF, Bluetooth RF, and other emissions. It seems the testing done in the video was focused on cell phone RF only.
Pocket Storage
Most people store their phones in a pocket. Some studies suggest the proximity to vital organs and reproductive organs may be causing problems. There’s an assumption that a phone placed in the pocket or next to the body won’t be in use. This is a mistake. Even if you’re using a headset, the phone is still emitting RF in your pocket at full strength. You may avoid brain tumors, but will still be exposing your body to high RF output.
What You Can Do
Here are some suggestions for reducing exposure to RF. Keep in mind that moving a phone away from your body even just a little bit reduced the intensity of RF exposure significantly.
- Check Signal Strength. Be aware of signal strength for both cell tower signal and WiFi signal. Lower signals result in higher cell and WiFi RF output for your device. Low signals also result in slower Internet bandwidth.
- Enable WiFi Calling. In an area with poor cell phone reception, WiFi calling lets you make and receive phone calls over WiFi. This should allow the phone to reduce the cellular RF and get longer battery life.
- Safe Phone Carrying. When carrying your phone, consider placing it in a bag or purse rather than in your pocket. Cargo pants provide pockets suitable for carrying a phone in a position further away from vital organs.
- Use a Mesh WiFi Network. Most smart routers use beam forming technology allowing their output to be intensified in the direction where devices are. With a mesh network, the routers and devices can reduce their RF output because the distance is reduced between devices and routers. An example would be the Google WiFi system. If you need assistance with this, contact our support team.
- Use Alternative Methods. You can reduce your exposure to harmful radiation by using other methods of communication such as email, texting, video calls, hands-free communications, or a headset. Avoid placing a cell phone against your head for long periods of time.
Cell Phones and Cigarettes
The cell phone industry hired a lawyer who previously defended the tobacco industry. They are demanding that the city of Berkeley not require the display of health warnings about cell phones, even though these warnings are required by federal law to be disclosed to customers. Currently the information is buried in fine print within lengthy user agreements. The concern is that there could be a decline in sales if consumers are informed about potential health problems. The city of Berkeley is simply making the federally mandated warning more visible to consumers.
Government Agencies Slow to Respond
There is some concern that Health Canada and other government agencies are favoring mobile manufacturers rather than protecting citizens. In the past when evidence suggested cigarettes were harmful, Health Canada was slow to get on board with warning the public. Here’s the current Health Canada warning regarding cell phone usage: “Even if a small child were exposed to a cell phone 24 hours a day, 365 days a year… there would be no adverse health effects.” This warning sounds similar to what doctors and health agencies were saying about harm from tobacco early on.
What Research Suggests
Frank Clegg, former President of Microsoft Canada, emphasizes that studies show there can be a variety of harmful side effects from levels of radiation below the Canadian safety guidelines.
Conclusion
Consumers should follow the best practices of safe phone use shown above and encourage others to do the same. Manufacturers should do the right thing and provide consumers with as much safety information as possible.