Cell Phone Radiation Declared “Possible Carcinogen”

On May 21, 2011, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a committee of 27 scientists from 14 different countries working on behalf of the World Health Organization (WHO), concluded that exposure to cell phone radiation is a “possible carcinogen” and classified it into the 2B category. This is the same category as the pesticide DDT, lead, gasoline engine exhaust, burning coal and dry cleaning chemicals, just to name a few.

The group did not perform any new research; rather the decision is based on a review of the previously published evidence, including the Interphone study results published so far (about 50% have still not been released) and the Hardell studies. This is the same evidence that the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the American Cancer Society (ACS), among others, have previously waved aside; calling it “reassuring,” and claiming it showed “no evidence” of harm.

Finally, this international committee of experts has now declared otherwise. Only days before the meeting commenced, a key ‘expert’, Dr. Anders Albom of the Karolinska Institute, was let go from the expert group after it was revealed he had failed to disclose a potential telecom industry conflict on his WHO conflict-of-interest statement.  Anders Albom and others long suspected of ties to the telecom industry had recently been featured in the spoof poster created by activists below, “The Science of the Lambs”.

Christopher Wild, Director of IARC, opened the IARC meeting on carcinogenicity of RF calling for scientists to understand the gravity of the upcoming decision for society.

Cell Phones—A Worldwide Health Hazard

As you probably know, over five billion people worldwide, about 80 percent of the world’s population, now has a cell phone. This fact alone makes this an extremely important issue as it affects the vast majority of people on Earth—not to mention the detrimental impact it may have on insects, such as bees, and other animals. Many Third World countries have actually circumvented the infrastructure of landlines entirely, and have gone straight to using cell phones.

It’s important to realize that while this type of radiation exposure may not pose an immediate short-term threat to your health, as it is not an ionizing type of radiation (like x-rays) that can break chemical bonds and directly damage DNA, cell phones emit a radio frequency field in the microwave band that interacts with your own bio signaling system, which can over time cause a variety of health problems and raise your risk of cancer. Cancers associated with this radiation include brain tumors (gliomas), acoustic neuromas, meningiomas, salivary gland tumors, eye cancers, testiculal cancers and leukemia.

And, importantly, in some people, acute symptoms from cell phone radiation can also be debilitating, greatly impairing cognitive function, even for long periods after cell phone use. And while DNA is not directly impacted, its repair processes are impacted, the end result being damaged and malfunctioning DNA, with unknown consequences for future generations.

Don’t be misled by those saying there is not DNA damage just because the power is not hot enough to separate electrons from atoms. DNA has been shown to be exquisitely sensitive to these fields, according to research by Martin Blank, PhD of Columbia University and others. In fact, it is “exquisitely sensitive” to EMFs, Blank says, across the entire spectrum of frequencies (i.e. from the low frequency ELFs, such as from electricity, to the higher frequency radiofrequency and microwaves from cell phones and WiFI, due to DNA’s ‘coil of coil structure’.

In 2008, the year for which we have the most recent statistics, there were 237,913 new cases of brain cancers and about two-thirds of these were gliomas.

The WHO scientific committee, relying on much research from the Swedish Hardell group and IARC’s own 13-country Interphone data, found that cell phone radiation exposure increased the risk of this type of cancer by as much as 40 percent.  However, other experts who have reviewed the evidence believe it may be far worse than that, warning that it may actually double your risk of developing brain cancer.

Wireless Industry Grasping for Straws

Needless to say, the wireless industry is now scrambling to counteract the bad press. John Walls, vice president for public affairs for The Wireless Association (CTIA) was quoted in the New York Times, stating:

“This IARC classification does not mean cell phones cause cancer.”

He also noted that both the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have evaluated the evidence, concluding that cell phone radiation does not pose a health threat.

Well, the last time I checked, the FDA couldn’t even distinguish between the health effects of raw- versus pasteurized milk laced with genetically modified growth hormones, so I’m not so sure they’re qualified to evaluate something as complex as the health effects of non-ionizing radiation… And the FCC, while it regulates the media industry, including telecommunications services, it is also politically tied to those industries. At least one of the current commissioners (who make the decisions) is a former telecommunications industry lobbyist.

Additionally, as clearly stated on the FCC’s website, the FCC’s “primary jurisdiction does not lie in the health and safety area, and it must rely on other agencies and organizations for guidance in these matters.” Hence, it stands to reason that a “thumbs up” from the FCC is not all it’s cracked up to be.

In all likelihood they too may eventually be forced to recognize the IARC’s classification of cell phone radiation as “possibly carcinogenic, and change exposure guidelines for industry for microwave radiation from wireless technologies so that the standards are based on what we know is happening biologically, not simply on assumptions of physicists. An excellent write-up on the FDA and FCC conflicts and the failure of our government on this was published on ElectromagneticHealth.org last summer:

ElectromagneticHealth.org asked,

“If the FCC says it relies on the safety expertise of the FDA, and states it considered opinions from the FDA in setting its safety guidelines, but the FDA officially does not review the safety of radiation-emitting consumer products such as cell phones and PDAs before they can be sold, as it does with new drugs or medical devices, then where is the responsibility for assuring safety actually domiciled?”

The New York Times also quotes Dr. Meir Stampfer, a professor of epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health and a paid adviser for the cell phone industry:

“It’s a very thoughtful group, but the important thing is putting it into the perspective of what ‘possible’ means, and the likelihood that this is really something to be concerned about. The evidence doesn’t support that. Comparing this to going out in the sun or any number of normal everyday activities that we’re not really concerned about, I would put cell phones in the lower part of that category.”

His outdated knowledge about the “danger” of sun exposure notwithstanding, I cannot help but think that this is little more than a grasping for straws, supporting his telecom client’s interests.

John Maris, MD of Children’s Hospital in Philadelphia, has also recently made a statement in which he said, several times, “there is nothing at all to be worried about”.

Misinterpreting the intent of the 2B classification of cell phone radiation as a potential carcinogen, Maris said

“The World Health Organization released a cautionary statement to say that we just need more information. That does not mean that cell phones cause cancer.”

However, if we simply needed ‘more information’, cell phone radiation would not have been classified as a possible carcinogen by this esteemed body. And they made this decision before publishing the remaining almost 50 percent of the Interphone study, including much of the results from studies on tumors closest to where the cell phone us held against the head.

Cell phone radiation has the potential to harm your health, just like DDT or lead, which is what experts in the field have been saying for years. That doesn’t mean that every person exposed to those substances will get cancer.

But it raises your overall risk, depending on a number of other factors, such as your general state of health, which in part is dependent on exposure to other toxins through food, air, and water, just to name a few.  And I believe it’s important to remember that when we’re talking about toxins in general, it’s your accumulated toxic load that matters most. So in that sense, heavy users of cell phones and other wireless gadgets are at exponentially increased risk, and should at the very least be warned so that they can make educated decisions about their self-imposed level of exposure.

Why You Should Take Notice of the IARC’s Conclusion

Darius Leszczynski, an electromagnetic field (EMF) scientist with the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority of Finland, points out in a recent blog post that one of the factors that lend extra weight to the IARC’s decision is that of the 27 working group members (Three of the 30 IARC members did not participate in the final voting process. One had previously been removed from the group due to a previously undisclosed potential conflict of interest.), a clear and overwhelming majority voted for the 2B classification. It was not a decision fraught with controversy and disagreement.

“This should be recognized as a strong mandate, for the IARC and the WHO, to classify RF-EMF (including mobile phone radiation) as 2B agent – possibly carcinogenic to humans,” Leszczynski writes.

… One has to remember that IARC monographs are considered as “gold standard” in evaluation of carcinogenicity of physical and chemical agents. If IARC says it so clearly then there must be sufficient scientific reason for it, or IARC would not put its reputation behind such claim.”

An excellent review of the dynamics surrounding the IARC decision, including the industry supporting views of the U.S. National Cancer Institute’s Peter Inskip, who walked out of the meeting before the vote, can be found on Microwave News.

What Does this Mean Long-Term?

Some nations have already adopted the precautionary principle, and have previously issued precautionary advice to mobile phone users. Now that cell phone radiation has been classified as a “possible carcinogen,” these messages can be strengthened in a meaningful way to reach more people, across the world.

Additionally, we’re still in the infancy of EMF science as it relates to understanding the mechanism of the human health effects. One of the most beneficial effects this classification can have is to increase support for more research, as only when the mechanisms of action are better understood can causation be proven.

Research funds have begun to dry up in recent years, but that doesn’t mean we don’t need more research. It just means that those holding the purse strings thought it wasn’t worth looking into further since the potential for health hazards seemed remote, based on conventional thinking about the biological effects of non-ionizing radiation, or because the findings would be detrimental to the cell phone industry.

Government officials rely on the wireless industry for financial support, and the health of our entire economy is deeply intertwined at this point with telecom industry interests.

Alasdair Philips of Powerwatch in the U.K. makes the important point that we are basing our insight, even in the IARC evaluation, on research conducted many, many years ago, and usage patterns have changed. He says that a review of the incidence of brain tumors conducted in the U.K. show that in fact the incidence rates for malignant temporal and frontal lobe tumors IS in fact rising.

Philips says,

“The graph below, created from research by de Vocht et al shows a rise in brain tumors in the regions of the brain closest to where you hold a cell phone. Tumors in other areas of the brain are actually decreasing.”

This is an extremely important finding says Camilla Rees of ElectromagneticHealth.org, as other countries have not separated out their overall brain tumor incidence data by type and location of tumor so insights like this, that brain tumors are actually on the rise, can be gleaned.

If we fail to continue researching the effects of this type of radiation, we throw away the opportunity to perhaps alter the technology in such a way that it significantly reduces the health impacts. I believe doing nothing is not an option at present, and hopefully the IARC’s decision will help usher in greater research and safer technologies.

Rees says greater transparency in research funding is also urgently needed:

“Universities must be upfront and disclose the extent of their funding from telecom industry sources. This way, when statements downplaying the known cancer risks are made by academics, any telecom industry potential influence can be better assessed and clearer to the public.”

Three Important Factors to Remember that May Reduce Health Risks

The major take-home fact that everyone needs to be concerned about is to protect your children, as they’re clearly the most vulnerable. This includes unborn babies as well, so pregnant women may want to take extra precautions.

Increasing numbers of children are now using cell phones at an ever younger age, and it’s important to realize that this exponentially increases their risk of cancer and any other wireless radiation-related health problems over their lifetime. According to professor Lennart Hardell of Sweden, those who begin using cell phones heavily as teenagers have 4 to 5 times more brain cancer as young adults!

So I believe you really need to set limits, if you’re a parent.

How to Pick the Phone Carrier with the Lowest EMF

Please remember, you cannot determine safety by the SAR (specific absorption rate) on your phone. Buying a low SAR phone is a false sense of security, because the SAR rating has nothing to do with the non-ionizing radiation emitted and only is gauge of the intensity of the heating effect, and simply comparing one phone to another. One thing you can do, which hardly anyone is discussing, is to pick your cell phone carrier appropriately. There are two primary technologies used to distribute cell phone signals in the U.S.:

1. CDMA
2. GSM

As it turns out, GSM is far more dangerous because it emits 28 times more radiation than CDMA phones. In the United States, there are two primary CDMA networks: Verizon and Sprint. Most of the others use GSM, but you need to check with your specific carrier to confirm.

Common Sense Tips to Lower Your Cell Phone Risks

While the IARC panel, being a science not policy organization, did not make many specific recommendations to consumers, IARC Director Christopher Wild did take it upon himself to publically state:

“Given the potential consequences for public health of this classification and findings it is important that additional research be conducted into the long-term, heavy use of mobile phones. Pending the availability of such information, it is important to take pragmatic measures to reduce exposure such as hands-free devices or texting.”

And, Jonathan Samet, leader of the IARC RF-Carcinogenicity working group, of University of Southern California, has said:

“The 2B designation was not limited to cell phones. It has “broad applicability” to all sources of RF radiation” according to Microwave News, something the general news media has not yet zeroed in on.

Keep in mind that completely eliminating exposure is close to impossible. Even if you don’t use a cell phone and your home is wireless-free, you can be exposed to microwave radiation from your neighbor’s wireless devices or while visiting “hot spots” or traveling near cell phone towers. That said, there’s still plenty you can do to minimize your exposure and help safeguard your children’s health:

• Children Should Never Use Cell Phones: Barring a life-threatening emergency, children should not use a cell phone, or a wireless device of any type. Children are far more vulnerable to cell phone radiation than adults, because of their thinner skull bones, and still developing immune and neurological systems.
• Reduce Your Cell Phone Use: Turn your cell phone off more often. Reserve it for emergencies or important matters. As long as your cell phone is on, it emits radiation intermittently, even when you are not actually making a call.Leave an outgoing message on your phone stating your cell phone policy so others know not to call you on it except in emergencies.
• Use a Land Line at Home and at Work: Although more and more people are switching to using cell phones as their exclusive phone contact, it is a dangerous trend and you can choose to opt out of the madness.
• Reduce or Eliminate Your Use of Other Wireless Devices: You would be wise to cut down your use of these devices. Just as with cell phones, it is important to ask yourself whether or not you really need to use them every single time.

If you must use a portable home phone, use the older kind that operates at 900 MHz. They are no safer during calls, but at least some of them do not broadcast constantly even when no call is being made. Note the only way to truly be sure if there is an exposure from your cordless phone is to measure with an electrosmog meter, and it must be one that goes up to the frequency of your portable phone (so old meters won’t help much). As many portable phones are 5.8 Gigahertz, we recommend you look for RF meters that go up to 8 Gigahertz, the highest range now available in a meter suitable for consumers.

Alternatively you can be very careful with the base station placement as that causes the bulk of the problem since it transmits signals 24/7, even when you aren’t talking. So if you can keep the base station at least three rooms away from where you spend most of your time, and especially your bedroom, it may not be as damaging to your health.

Ideally it would be helpful to turn off or disconnect your base station every night before you go to bed. Levels of microwave radiation from portable phones can be extraordinarily high, according to Camilla Rees.

“Portable phone radiation can be as high or higher than a wireless router, though most people would have no idea that this common device at their bedside could be harmful”.

You can find RF meters at www.emfsafetystore.com. But you can pretty much be sure your portable phone is a problem if the technology is labeled DECT, or digitally enhanced cordless technology.

• Limit Your Cell Phone Use to Where Reception is Good: The weaker the reception, the more power your phone must use to transmit, and the more power it uses, the more radiation it emits, and the deeper the dangerous radio waves penetrate into your body. Ideally, you should only use your phone with full bars and good reception.Also seek to avoid carrying your phone on your body as that merely maximizes any potential exposure. Ideally put it in your purse or carrying bag. Placing a cell phone in a shirt pocket over the heart is asking for trouble, as is placing it in a man’s pocket if he seeks to preserve his fertility.
• Don’t Assume One Cell Phone is Safer than Another.There’s no such thing as a “safe” cell phone, and do not rely on the SAR value to evaluate the safety of your phone. Always seek CDMA carriers over GSM as they have far lower radiation in their signaling technology. And remember, eliminating cell phone use, or greatly lowering cell phone use from phones of all kinds, is where true prevention begins.
• Keep Your Cell Phone Away From Your Body When it is On: The most dangerous place to be, in terms of radiation exposure, is within about six inches of the emitting antenna. You do not want any part of your body within that area.
• Respect Others Who are More Sensitive: Some people who have become sensitive can feel the effects of others’ cell phones in the same room, even when it is on but not being used. If you are in a meeting, on public transportation, in a courtroom or other public places, such as a doctor’s office, keep your cell phone turned off out of consideration for the ‘second hand radiation’ effects. Children are also more vulnerable, so please avoid using your cell phone near children.
• Use Safer Headset Technology: Wired headsets will certainly allow you to keep the cell phone farther away from your body. However, if a wired headset is not well-shielded the wire itself acts as an antenna attracting ambient information carrying radio waves and transmitting radiation directly to your brain. Make sure that the wire used to transmit the signal to your ear is shielded.The best kind of headset to use is a combination shielded wire and air-tube headset. These operate like a stethoscope, transmitting the information to your head as an actual sound wave; although there are wires that still must be shielded, there is no wire that goes all the way up to your head.

We Can WIN this Battle

This latest development reminds me of the statements made by two famous men: Gandhi, and Arthur Schopenhauer, about the stages all truths must go through before being fully integrated into any society:

First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.
Mohandas Gandhi

All truth passes through three stages.

1. First, it is ridiculed.
2. Second, it is violently opposed.
3. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.
   Arthur Schopenhauer

We are now entering into the third phase described by Schopenhauer:

Acceptance.

This is the typical transition, and it’s not just related to health; it’s really related to any principle of truth because truth is something that you really can’t suppress for very long. It will eventually surface, and it’s exactly what we’re now seeing in so many areas.

For example, I was one of the first public figures to recommend and encourage the use of vitamin D because of all of its amazing health benefits, and for years I’ve sought to dispel the beliefs of many dermatologists and expert medical groups that the sun is dangerous. Nothing could be further from the truth as long as you have reasonable and rational exposure to it. This is one major area where we’ve already made a huge impact.

Here are four more health challenges that are currently being violently opposed under the current paradigm:

1. Water fluoridation
2. Genetically modified (GM) food
3. Mercury amalgams
4. Vaccinations

I address these four issues in the video above, so if you haven’t done so already, please listen to it, or read through the transcript.

More Information

Now that we’ve established safer ways of using your cell phone, I just want to emphasize how excited and delighted I am about this recent announcement from the IARC because it really is a vindication of much of the work that I’ve been doing. Over the years, I’ve posted more than 200 articles about this topic.

To learn more, please see my dedicated EMF site.

I highly recommend setting aside an hour to listen to ElectromagneticHealth.org founder Camilla Rees’ interview with Karl Maret, MD. With an extensive background in medicine, electrical engineering, and biomedical engineering, Dr. Maret is uniquely qualified to speak on the topic of electromagnetic fields, and he shares some of the most compelling arguments to date on why you must use extreme caution when it comes to cell phones, cordless phones, smart meters and other forms of electromagnetic fields (EMFs).

You can also listen to an important 20-minute speech by Martin Blank, PhD, who spoke at the November 18, 2010 Commonwealth Club of California program, “The Health Effects of Electromagnetic Fields,” co-sponsored by ElectromagneticHealth.org. Dr. Blank speaks with deep experience and commanding authority on the impact on cells and DNA from electromagnetic fields, and explains why your DNA is especially vulnerable to electromagnetic fields of all kinds.

An “Elephant in the Room”?

On a final note, Camilla Rees of ElectromagneticHealth.org cautions that while the IARC decision was a true watershed event, especially given IARC’s own 13-country Interphone study downplayed brain tumor risk when published last May, with news headlines heralding “No Risk Found”, she says:

“This first IARC classification is just the tip of the iceberg. There is a big elephant in the room most people are not seeing.

Microwave radiation emitted by cell phones is the same kind of radiation emitted by other wireless technologies, such as WiFi routers, portable phones, wireless baby monitors and cell towers.

The distinction is that the cell phone has more power at the head, and they operate at different frequencies. But given society is blanketing itself in this radiation at a range of frequencies, and the radiation is known to cause DNA damage, cancer, impaired fertility, cognitive impairment, such as memory changes, interference with learning and wildlife and ecosystem effects, we feel it is urgent that federal research funding be immediately allocated to examining this issue in the broader sense, far beyond the cell phone and brain tumor issue”

Fertility and Other Concerns

Fertility impacts from wireless radiation is one of the issues that is of greatest concern, given the number of people exposed to wireless technologies. Last Fall Rees published a “Letter to Parents on Fertility and Other Risks to Children” discussing these concerns that every parents will want to read.

And this month, Holistic Primary Care, a large circulation magazine for physicians and health practitioners, has published a piece on fertility by Alasdair Philips of Powerwatch entitled “Male Infertility Linked to Cell Phone EMF Exposure”   Philips reviews the damage to sperm morphology and motility, fertility, as well as DNA and testicular changes . All men, or parents of a male child, will want to understand the fertility damage now occurring and take steps to create EMF-free environments.

Beyond fertility impairment, Rees says there is grave concern among scientists, such as Dr. Blank, about EMF’s impact on our genetic material:

“If we do not look at this subject now, with significant federal resources, the damage occurring to the human species, as well as to animals and nature, may not be reversible. It is important public health officials understand the consequences of their inaction, or slow action, on this urgent public health issue”.

Joel Moskowitz, PhD of UC Berkeley and others, as well, have proposed a $1 per year surcharge on cell phones to fund a $300 million federal research fund immediately.

Rees says an immediate step schools should take is to swap out wireless networks and exchange them with hard-wired connections.

“This will lessen long-term damage to our children as well prevent the short-term cognitive difficultiess occurring that impair learning. This investment in our children’s health is essential”.

Rees, who is founder of ElectromagneticHealth.org is also founder of Campaign for Radiation Free Schools (Facebook).

“What I don’t understand”, Rees says, “is how a trillion dollar industry could have emerged without our government expressing concern about human exposure to microwave radiation, when we have known for over a half century that microwaves are biologically active. There has been a terrible failure of government here. I hope we can learn from this.

Congress needs to place public safety above commercial interests. We have seen health overlooked in so many areas of society, for example in government support of Big Pharma, Big Telccom, Big Agra,  etc.,at the expense of public health, and it is our responsibility as citizens to stand up and let our representatives in Congress understand what we value, and actively vote those representatives in government out of office if they are not concerned with our values and responding to serious public health issues.”

Readers can sign the EMF Petition to Congress here.