Can Cell Phone Radiation Harm Your Child's Brain?

Our most precious resource, our nation’s children are exposed to a risk that no one seems to notice: cell phone radiation. While scientists around the world are pressuring their local governments to restrict the use of cell phones by children, the U.S. does nothing. Go to any mall, movie theater, or school and you’ll see young masses all with one ear to the newest cell phones on the market. The brain of a child is constantly developing, undergoing changes and obtaining more information in a few short years at a rate that won’t be matched for the rest of their lives. Add to this the radiation from cell phone exposure through the inner ear and it creates a laboratory with unknown consequences. Studies over the last five years have shown that the rate at which children develop autism is concurrent with increased cell phone use. The studies also suggest the electromagnetic radiation from wireless devices (like cell phones) in conjunction with environmental and genetic factors all increase the incidence of autism.

The World Reacts

Cell phone radiation has been in the news quite a bit lately, some may think that this issue is only gaining traction in the U.S. Not so! Around the world, the concern about the dangers of cell phone radiation are real and governments are legislating to protect their citizens. Take at look at the how other countries and cultures are responding to this growing concern (all articles are in English):

Abu Dhabi, UAE: Dangerous Talk

Brussels, Belgium: International Case-Controlled Studies of Cancer in Relation to Mobile Telephone Use

New Dehli, India: Possible health hazards from mobile phone radiation

Paris, France: Rift delays release of study on safety of cellphones

Toronto, Canada: Toronto Public Health advises kids and teens to limit cell phone usage, as health effects are unknown

Yemen: Mobile phones and kids: helpful or harmful?

Lawyers are beginning to look at cell phone - cancer link

With the prevalence of the link of cell phone use to cancer in the media as of late, professions other than just those in the medical community are beginning to take notice. The article Cell Phone Use and Cancer: The Debate Continues from LawyersandSettlements.com discusses not only the possible link of Senator Ted Kennedy's brain tumor to cell phone radiation, but the Larry King Live show from earlier this month on cell phones.

Dr. Gupta was Wrong!

On May 23, 2008, The Larry King Show’s topic was “Are Cell Phones Dangerous?” CNN Medical Director, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, was very supportive of the fact that cell phones could be dangerous. Guests on the program that evening included Johnnie Cochran’s widow and his neurosurgeon. Johnnie Cochran had died from a brain tumor three years ago. At that time, his daughter had attributed his death to his cell phone use. The tumor which killed him was located behind the ear the he had used while talking on his phone.

Near the end of the program, Dr. Gupta made two suggestions which he felt would decrease the potential risk from cell phone usage:

1. Use a case on your hip to hold your phone.
2. Use a wired headset to keep the cell phone away from the ear.

Both of these suggestions are wrong!

The reason why carrying a cell phone on the hip isn’t any safer than carrying it in your pocket is the fact that it transmits radiation directly into the body while your cell phone is on. For men, studies done by the American Society for Reproductive Health have shown that this radiation affects men’s fertility and can lower sperm count. For pregnant women, carrying a cell phone this way may affect the unborn child’s future behavioral patterns, according to a recent UCLA study. What should be done is when the cell phone is not being used, shut it off.

As for wired headsets, studies in Europe by one of the most influential consumer protection organizations concluded that wired headsets increase radiation into the ear by as much as 300%! Bluetooth devices are nearly as dangerous since the signal from the phone transmits radiation directly into the ear. The solution to this is the WaveShield. We’ve taken the wired headset and replaced the wire going into the ear with an air tube, just like a stethoscope. This transmits only air and sound into the, ZERO RADIATION.

CBS Early Show: Cell Phones' Radiation Rated

This morning on CBS' The Early Show had an interview with CNET's Natali Del Conte regarding their ratings of cell phone radiation and safety. See: CNET Puts Together Comprehensive List Of Emissions Levels ; Health Risks, If Any, Still Unclear

Has The New York Times stumbled onto something?

In The New York Times Well blog, Tara Parker-Pope comments on how "CNET editors note [that] the data [from published information] aren’t meant to imply that cellphone radiation poses a risk, nor is it meant to say that the phones are safe."

Pregnant? Put that cell phone down!

According to a recently published study by a UCLA researcher, women using cell phones while pregnant may cause damage to a developing child. The study has shown that the regular use of cell phones by pregnant women increases the likelihood that the developing child will suffer from behavioral problems. Studies linking autism to cell phone use have shown that rates of autism have increased concurrently to the increased use of the devices. The studies also suggest that EMR (electromagnetic radiation) from wireless devices coupled with environmental and genetic factors may increase the chance of autism.

See: http://www.ph.ucla.edu/pr/newsitem052108.html http://www.enn.com/health/article/37306