Health Alert 5/25/16: U.S. Government is expected to issue a public announcement that Cell Phone Radiation Presents A Cancer Risk For Humans. The U.S. National Toxicology Program (NTP) completed its $25 million study with a consensus that “there was a carcinogenic effect.”
SafBaby’s Healthy Building and Indoor Environmental Expert, Mary Cordaro, answers concerned parents’ questions and provides solutions for the safe use of cell phones and other wireless devices.
“Children should be banned from using mobile phones immediately to stop them from suffering brain tumors.“
– Lloyd Morgan, US Scientist, EMF Expert, Senior Research Fellow at the Environmental Health Trust
Are Cell Phones Harmful to a Baby or Child’s Health?
This is a hard but very real fact to accept: whether your phone is in standby mode or you’re talking, any smart phone emits toxic levels of “non-ionizing” radiation 10-15 feet out from the phone.
Non-ionizing radiation from cell phones has been shown to cross the blood brain barrier (that’s the barrier that separates the circulating blood from the brain’s extracellular fluid), damages DNA, and is associated with cancer.
That means that you are exposed to measurably high, potentially toxic levels of radiation from a smart phone or tablet in standby mode, and so is everyone around you, within 10-15 feet. We didn’t have the data on that distance until just a couple of years ago when German EMF scientists presented their findings to the 7th EMF Conference in Munich, in April 2013. To reach safer levels of exposure to non-ionizing radiation from smart phones and tablets, they found that a distance of 10-15 feet is required.
In 2011, The World Health Organization (WHO) upgraded cell phone radiation to a group 2B category “a possible human carcinogen.” This classification was based on research showing increased brain cancer in heavy users (30 minutes per day) with over 10 years of use. Note that lead and DDT are also included on this list.
In fact, in January of this year, doctors and scientists issued a statement requesting that WHO/IARC immediately conduct the appropriate scientific review within IARC to move RF/EMF radiation from its current class 2B to class 1, known carcinogen, based on review of the complete scientific database.
Most recently, the American Academy of Pediatrics sent a letter to the FCC urging them to adopt U.S. standards that “protect children’s health, reflect use patterns of cellphone users today, and provide consumers the information they need to make informed decisions.”
There are no studies that show that digital pulsed microwave radiation exposure for children is safe or that continuous exposure from cell phones, tablets, cell towers, cordless phones, Wi-Fi routers, baby monitors, smart meters, or any other wireless device is safe.
Why are Children at Higher Risk than Adults?
Children have thinner skulls and their brains are still growing which puts them at greater risk because the radiation penetrates deeper into their brains.
Recently, US scientist, EMF expert, Senior Research Fellow at the Environmental Health Trust and brain tumor survivor, Lloyd Morgan, predicted “a tsunami of brain tumors. I do not think we will see the beginning of it for 10 or maybe 15 years but, once it explodes, it could be devastating.”
“Children are not little adults,” Dr. Gisela Mercada-Deane, chair of radiology at the American Academy of Pediatrics, said. “The amount of radio frequency that children will be exposed by the time they are our age [an adult] is exponential to the amount of radiation, radio frequencies that we ourselves are being exposed to in a lifetime.”
In 2013, it was found that at least nine out of ten 16 year-olds have their own cell phone, as do more than 40% of children 6-8 years old.
Dr. Lennart Hardell, professor in oncology and cancer epidemiology at the University Hospital in Orebro, Sweden and his research team report that “people who started using mobiles young were five times more likely to contract gliomas (a type of brain tumour). This is very worrying. We should be taking precautions..” Dr. Lennart believes the hazard to children and teenagers may be even greater as his results do not take into account the long-term use of cell phones.
Do Baby Monitors Emit Non-ionizing Radiation?
Baby monitors also emit non-ionizing radiation. If you own a wireless baby monitor, and especially if the baby monitor is labeled DECT or Gigahertz, replace it with a better choice. Baby monitors also emit non-ionizing radiation. If you own a wireless baby monitor, and especially if the baby monitor is labeled DECT or Gigahertz, replace it. A better choice is a webcam that is hard-wired to a computer with Cat 5 or a Cat 6 Ethernet cable.
I’m Using my Smartphone with its Headset. Doesn’t that Protect Me?
You may have heard that if you keep a smart phone away from your head, you may prevent brain cancer. But that’s only part of the story. By keeping your phone away from your head, you are only preventing the dangerous effects of heat from the radiation. Heat is a property of non-ionizing radiation that can damage tissue. Heat “cooks” your head. The good news here is that exposure to the heat effect can be eliminated by using a headset. But from thousands of independent studies by many international scientists, we also know that serious health effects from non-ionizing radiation may occur at much lower levels of radiation than the levels that produce heat.
Non-ionizing radiation results from the toxic measurable frequencies from all wireless devices such as from cell phones and tablets. The closer to the device, the higher the non-ionizing radiation levels. And, non-ionizing radiation travels on wire. By using a regular headset without an air tube and ferrite filter, you’re actually bringing the non-ionizing radiation (not the heat effect) closer to your brain, right inside your ear. So please do get an air tube head set and ferrite filter. A ferrite filter is a small metal filter that clips onto the headset wire, and measurably reduces the radiation that travels on the wire alongside your body. Air tube headsets and ferrite filters are sold on various website such as Mercola and Less EMF.com. But don’t be tempted to buy other types of radiation gadgets as they do not necessarily work.
Here’s a tip: Using a cell phone in speaker mode, but not while holding it, is as good if not better than using an air tube headset and ferrite filter (also while not holding it). But remember, either method simply reduces your exposure to the highest levels of radiation, so keep your cell phone use to a minimum. If you must hold the phone while talking, hold it for as little time as possible, and of course, not while you’re driving.
Aren’t We Exposed to All Sorts of EMF’s (electromagnetic fields) All Day Long?
There are EMF’s coming from indoors and outdoors: cell towers, base stations, antennas, cordless phones and Wi-Fi are some examples. Depending on where you live, and if you share walls or ceilings with other apartments or homes, you may not be able to control your exposure to many of those things, but you can control the very dangerous exposure from cell phones, which are often right next to your child’s head!
Do Cell Phone Cases Help?
Not really. Surprisingly, some cases can actually block the phone’s antenna and intensify your exposure to radiation up to 70%.
Other cases offer only very partial shielding and do not provide true safety.
What Can Parents Do to Limit the Exposure to WiFi and Cell Phone Radiation?
Here are 6 things you can do right away:
- The safest recommendation is to avoid having a cell phone anywhere near a baby or child. Children should not use cell phones except for emergency situations and they should never put them next to their head. Period.
- Keep all devices completely off or put them in airplane mode. Airplane mode allows you to avoid that constant high level of toxic radiation from a smart phone. Until devices are completely shut off, there is still very low, but much safer levels of EMR emitted in airplane mode.
- Use a basic phone. A basic phone, also known as a flip phone, emits high levels only when you’re talking, so it is wise to limit calls. But in standby mode, a basic phone has much lower, safer levels than a smart phone. You can therefore safely keep a basic phone on standby mode to receive calls.
- Get a land line. At home, the best solution is to get a land line for making or receiving calls.
Tip: You can get calls on your corded land line by forwarding your cell phone to it. That way, you can keep your phone turned off or in airplane mode.
- If you have your smartphone in standby mode to receive texts and calls, keep it at least 15 feet away from all people and pets.
- Avoid Blue Tooth on your head. It’s better to use an air tube headset and ferrite filter instead. Using Blue Tooth in the car, as long as it’s built into the car and the antenna is on the outside of the car is best.
Tip: To access the internet and email when you’re away from home, carry a tablet with a monthly cell service, so you don’t need WiFi to use it. You can even text on a tablet. Keep it off or in airplane mode unless you’re actually using it because the levels are too high in standby mode. Minimize use, especially around children and never allow children to use it unless it’s in airplane mode.
Do Products on the Market that Claim to Decrease EMF’s Work?
I’m not against “energetic” devices (such as pendants and stick on products), but as they are not doing anything measurable for real protection, it’s best to use them AFTER you first take all of the measurable precautions above.
And, for more information and details on measurable versus energetic protection from cell phones, routers, and other wireless devices, read all my recent tips: “Reducing Electromagnetic Radiation from Wireless Sources.”
About SafBaby’s Healthy Building and Indoor Environmental Expert
Mary Cordaro is a healthy building and indoor environmental consultant and a certified Baubiologist. She ensures that what your house is built out of, what its interiors are comprised of, and what products are contained in it, are as healthy as possible.
For over 25 years, Mary has been creating safe and healing living spaces. Her clients include children and adults who suffer from allergies, asthma, mold, chemical or electrical sensitivities as well as new and prospective parents who want their baby to begin life in a healthy home.
Her unique approach synthesizes the German field of Baubiologie* and American building science. She often collaborates with a team of world-class specialists to diagnose and solve complex environmental issues in nurseries, homes and offices. For remodels and new construction, she specifies healthy building and interior materials.
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