Phones Change Human Cells
Document Title: Phones Change Human Cells
Document Ref No: R9705153
First Published: Reflections - TBA
Publication Date: 15th May 1997
Author's Name: Father Shay Cullen, SSC
New Discoveries by scientists in Australia show that electromagnetic radiation emitted by cell phones causes changes in the human cells and DNA. Brain cancer is one of the possible dangers from mobile phones ,but we still don't know.
In 1992 a court case was filed by a Florida man against a manufacturer of a mobile phone. The man's wife was a frequent user, up to five hours a day, everyday. She developed a brain tumor right at the spot where the phone antenna was closest to her head. The court case was one of the first of it's kind and there was little research as to the dangerous effects, if any, to humans from the electromagnetic radiation give off by the phone when in use.
The court was not convinced that there was a direct cause and effect between the radiation and the tumor. That does not say there was none it just not be proved sufficiently beyond reasonable doubt. New scientific evidence now shows a relationship between the frequencies emitted by the phones and changes in human cells and tissues.
Mobile phones, both digital and analogue, emit electromagnetic radiation in the microwave range of the spectrum just like light, radar, X-rays, and radio waves. The mobile phone is more dangerous because it is held close to the head of the person using it. The engineers who designed mobile phones and the manufacturers know this and during the 1980s they agreed on certain power levels that would limit the strength of the radiation.
However the criteria they used to determine the danger to health was based on their understanding of the heating or burning effect of microwaves on human body tissue much as a microwave oven would cook the skin. So the manufactures set the power level of the phone much lower than that which would burn the skin.
Still a mobile phone still get pretty hot to the ear. International safety standards follow the thermal or heat effects. Likewise electromagnetic safety standards for cables and transformers and other electric motors are based on the same thinking. They only considered the danger that could be caused by the HEAT factor when setting the safety standards. (Something the Napacor and Health department should take note of). They did not consider other kinds of biological damage because there was no research then.
Now-a-days there is a growing body of scientific evidence that shows that there is significant effect of such radiation on human cells. This new area of research is very significant and important to all users of cell phones and especially to parents who allow their children to use a cell phone.
In one of the latest experiments conducted by principal scientific officer Dr. Peter French, at the center of immunology of St. Vincent's Hospital in Sydney Australia, with a team of other scientists significant evidence was discovered about the effect of electromagnetic radiation on human cells. Dr.French is the president of the Australian and New Zealand Society for Cell Biology.
Doctor French and his fellow researchers set up experiments where they grew cells from human and animal tissue and in the laboratory exposed the cells to electromagnetic radiation exactly like those emitted from mobile cell phones.
The experiments turned up evidence of "... changes in some of the fundamental processes which control and regulate cell function ,in the absence of heating" to quote Dr.French. He exposed human cells from blood vessels,brain tumors,and connective tissue. He also studied the effect of the electromagnetic radiation from mobile phones on rat cells which are very similar to human mast cells. Mast cells, are those that are responsible for human allergic and asthmatic conditions. Dr French and his team found that there were changes in the cell structure,cell shape cell growth and what he calls protein localization.
Other scientists have also found changes in human DNA when exposed to the electromagnetic radiation. All of these indicate the presence of effect that are attributed to the heat factor given off by radiation. So the safety standards of the Mobile phone are not designed with this knowledge in hand. But there there have been no live experiments on living humans, (who wants to volunteer ? )
There is evidence that changes do occur in human cells and DNA. There is also evidence that effects on the brains and nervous system in Rats leading to memory loss, disruption of learned tasks and damage to their DNA string after a single exposure to cell-phone frequencies. What long term effects those changes have is not yet clear. Much more research has to be done. Another study in the United States on rats show no increase in brain tumors. But we don't know who paid for the experiments. If it was the telecommunications industry the results would be suspect.
Even so such a finding does not remove the possibility that human cells are effected differently. We are not the same as rats (however there are some exceptions). Dr.Peters reported that he has a phone but uses it very sparingly. That's not good news fro the cell phone companies . Prudence avoidance would be in order here. Who wants to take the risk of brain cancer by frequent of a cell phone when a land line will do. END
