For some time now, test results linking brain cancer from cell phone usage has been a mixed bag. It does. It might. etc. Well, the latest report from the World Health Organization claims that there may be a significant risk brain cancer from cell phone usage.
The report says that extensive use of wireless communication devices can increase the risk of glioma, a malignant type of brain cancer. Those who talk on their cell phone for at least 30 minutes a day for about 10 years are at greatest risk.
So what exactly is the risk? The radiofrequency electromagnetic fields found in radar and microwaves, as well as radio, television and telecommunication transmission signals are to blame, and with the fields virtually everywhere, why wouldn’t some people be alarmed? We know that some states have decided to put cancer warning labels on cell phone boxes, and there was a bit of controversy during CTIA last year in San Francisco regarding the matter. So is this something to start taking seriously?
We know that certain phones emit more radiation than others, but it would be easy to assume that smartphones emit the most. With so much data going in and out of these handsets, radiation exposure is everywhere. But what do you do when this market is really just beginning? The smartphone market is exploding and the technology around it is advancing rapidly. Moreover, the smartphones of last year are reaching feature phone prices, allowing more people who wouldn’t normally think of grabbing a smartphone to do so because of its affordability.
Truly testing the link between cell phones and cancer will take a long time, as the market is pretty new. Whether or not these electromagnetic fields act as a carcinogen to humans remains to be seen, but the World Health Organizations believes that it might. Luckily, texting had taken the world by storm and less time with the phone to your head is a good thing.
So what does the wireless industry do when the booming market may be giving its users cancer? Watch the video below.
[Via: BusinessInsider, pic]