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For Your Safety
house, typically operate at far lower power levels, and thus produce RF exposures far below
the FCC safety limits.
4. What are the results of the research done already?
The research done thus far has produced conflicting results, and many studies have suffered
from flaws in their research methods. Animal experiments investigating the effects of
Radio Frequency (RF) energy exposures characteristic of wireless phones have yielded
conflicting results that often cannot be repeated in other laboratories. A few animal
studies, however, have suggested that low levels of RF could accelerate the development
of cancer in laboratory animals. However, many of the studies that showed increased
tumor development used animals that had been genetically engineered or treated with
cancer-causing chemicals so as to be pre-disposed to develop cancer in the absence of
RF exposure. Other studies exposed the animals to RF for up to 22 hours per day. These
conditions are not similar to the conditions under which people use wireless phones, so
we do not know with certainty what the results of such studies mean for human health.
Three large epidemiology studies have been published since December 2000. Between
them, the studies investigated any possible association between the use of wireless phones
and primary brain cancer, glioma, meningioma, or acoustic neuroma, tumors of the brain or
salivary gland, leukemia, or other cancers. None of the studies demonstrated the existence
of any harmful health effects from wireless phone RF exposures. However, none of the
studies can answer questions about long-term exposures, since the average period of phone
use in these studies was around three years.
5. What research is needed to decide whether RF exposure from wireless phones poses a
health risk?
A combination of laboratory studies and epidemiological studies of people actually using
wireless phones would provide some of the data that are needed. Lifetime animal exposure
studies could be completed in a few years. However, very large numbers of animals
would be needed to provide reliable proof of a cancer promoting effect if one exists.
Epidemiological studies can provide data that is directly applicable to human populations,
but ten or more years follow-up may be needed to provide answers about some health
effects, such as cancer. This is because the interval between the time of exposure to a
cancer-causing agent and the time tumors develop — if they do — may be many, many
years. The interpretation of epidemiological studies is hampered by difficulties in measuring
actual RF exposure during day-to-day use of wireless phones. Many factors affect this