It seems like everyone has a cell phone nowadays.
Worldwide, nearly 1 billion people are using a cell phone. These numbers will continue to grow and that will mean more phones, cell phone towers, and other wireless antennas You cannot leave your house without your phone by your side, in your pocket or in your purse. But can that little electronic gadget be making your sick? Should you be concerned about the effects that regular exposure to radio frequency radiation can have on your health? More and more research is now being done across the world to determine what affect these phones have on our well being. Research has been concentrated on cancer, other health effects, electromagnetic interference and traffic deaths
Some researchers have found a link with regular exposure to radio frequency radiation and how it may interfere with the electrical fields of our cells.
Scientists have been exploring the connection between the radio frequency radiation and its link to eye cancer and both childhood and adult leukemia. RF fields have been classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as possibly carcinogenic to humans. Studies to date provide no indication that environmental exposure to RF fields, such as from base stations, increases the risk of cancer or any other disease.
Scientists have reported other health effects of using mobile phones including changes in brain activity, reaction times, and sleep patterns.
They are also looking into abnormal cell growth and damage to cellular DNA as well as attention span deficit and memory loss. According to the World Health Organization, these effects are minor and have no apparent health significance. More studies are underway to try to confirm these findings. Children are at much higher risk than adults of experiencing health problems related to regular exposure to radio frequency radiation; thinner and smaller skulls translate to greater absorption of radio frequency.
Pacemakers, implantable defibrillators, and certain hearing aids can be affected by the use of cell phones.
The proper functioning of these medical devices can be changed causing a dangerous problem. The pacemaker interference by the cellular phones was only found to be significant when the phones were held over the pacemakers-not when placed in the normal listening position over the ear. It is recommended that patients with heart pacemakers not place cellular telephones over the pacemaker area. There is good news though, research has shown that the risk is much reduced for 3G phones and newer equipment.
According to experimental research, drivers who talk on either handheld or hands-free cellular phones are as impaired as drunken drivers.
The study reinforced earlier research showing that hands-free cell phones are just as distracting as handheld cell phones. Both handheld and hands-free cell phones impaired driving, with no significant difference in the degree of impairment. Researchers state the findings”call into question driving regulations that prohibited handheld cell phones and permit hands-free cell phones,”. Cell phone users have been found to be 5 times more likely to get in an accident than undistracted drivers. Other studies have shown the risk is about the same as for drivers with a 0.08 blood-alcohol level. The growing body of evidence shows, hand-held or hands-free, it’s the act of participation in a conversation that’s tantamount in the cell phone safety debate.
Cell phones are now part of our every day way of life but they can also have some risks. You can use your cell phone but remember that you need to take breaks from it.
