The World Health Organization now lists cell phone use as a “carcinogenic hazard,” a category of cancer risks that contains lead, engine exhaust and chloroform, though it only lists cell phone use as a risk, and made clear that it has found no conclusive evidence linking cell phone use to any adverse health risks. The news here, however, is that the WHO now recognizes cell phone use as a potential cancer risk, whereas previously, they did not.
A team of 31 scientists from 14 countries peer-reviewed studies on cell phone safety and found enough evidence to reach the conclusion that cell phone use could indeed pose a health risk. There haven’t been any longterm studies to determine if cell phone use definitely poses a health risk, but the WHO claims there is a possible connection.
Dr. Keith Black, chairman of neurology at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center:
“The biggest problem we have is that we know most environmental factors take several decades of exposure before we really see the consequences.
What microwave radiation does in most simplistic terms is similar to what happens to food in microwaves, essentially cooking the brain. So in addition to leading to a development of cancer and tumors, there could be a whole host of other effects like cognitive memory function, since the memory temporal lobes are where we hold our cell phones.”
Results from the largest international study on cell phones as related to cancer, released in 2010, showed that participants who used a cell phone for over ten years or more doubled the rate of brain glioma.
(via CNN)
Published: May 31, 2011 02:35 pm