Is Cell Phone Radiation Dangerous?

We love our cell phones - all 70 million of them. They are both fashion accessories and an essential part of our lives. Yet since they first became widely available in the 1990s, there have been nagging doubts about just how safe they are.

Can cell phone radiation cause cancers in the brain? Does living near a cell phone mast raise your risk of other cancers? Despite official reassurances, we still don't seem to be any closer to a definite answer.

Opinion is divided on the safety of cell phones

Professor Denis Henshaw, head of the human radiation effects group at Bristol University, says: "We are steeped in denial over the safety of cell phones and related technologies."

He points, as an example, to a recent Austrian study which found a raised risk of breast cancer near phone masts. "We have emission levels in the UK similar to those in Austria — and yet there is no warning to people of possible dangers."

Contrast the UK position with that in other countries, where at the very least they take the approach that when it comes to this new technology, better safe than sorry.

The German government has taken a more cautious line over Wi-Fi. Last September, the German environment ministry recommended that people should keep their exposure to radiation as low as possible by replacing Wi-Fi with a cabled connection.

In 2006, the city of Frankfurt decided not to install wireless systems in schools until there was more health research.

In Austria, there is a much greater level of professional concern about the possible dangers. Three years ago, the Vienna Chamber of Doctors put up more than 21,000 posters in surgeries and other places with very specific warnings about cell phones, such as: "Use your phone as little as possible" and "Men - never keep a phone in your trouser pockets as it can reduce fertility."

A study reported last month found that out of 360 men attending an infertility clinic, those who used their cell the most had the poorest sperm quality.

The Austrian Medical Association is currently lobbying against the installation of Wi-Fi in schools. "Children using a laptop that is broadcasting Wi-Fi are very close to the antennae," says Dr Gerd Oberfeld, the association's spokesperson 23 research projects.

Yet there has been a considerable amount of other research suggesting the technology might not be so safe after all.

For instance, last October, two Swedish professors pulled together the results of 11 studies involving people who had used cells for more than a decade and found they were 20 per cent more likely to develop a benign tumour in the inner ear, and 30 per cent more likely to develop a type of brain tumour known as a malignant glioma.

Last summer, a group of 25 international scientists — known as the BioInitiative Working Group — carried out a major review of the evidence for the effect of microwaves on health.

They found evidence for a raised risk of brain tumour from cell phones, and also expressed concern about a possible raised risk of breast cancer, changes to genes, and inflammation in the blood vessels associated with conditions such as heart disease.

And it's not just cells and phone masts that are being implicated. Some experts are concerned about Wi-Fi networks which allow you to connect your computer directly to the internet without the need for wires.

These Wi-Fi networks are found increasingly in homes, offices and schools, as well as in cafes, hotels and other public places.

Last month, this long-running issue was given a new twist with the publication of a survey which found that cordless phones - used in millions of homes and offices - give off more radiation than cell phones. The reason is that the base acts like a mini cell phone mast, constantly broadcasting a signal.

All of these - cell phones and masts, cordless phones and Wi-Fi networks - use microwaves. The fear is that these might affect on environmental issues. "There is a huge amount of evidence that being that close to an aerial poses a danger to human health."