Are mobile phones a risk to our health?

by jmellors (student)

ScienceCase StudyJoseph Mellors

In 2010, over 5 billion people around the world are in ownership of a mobile phone. That’s around 60% of the world’s population; perhaps what is more astounding is that, this number is still growing.

When using a mobile phone, radiation is all directions is released, some even goes through you. This radiation is the same radiation as used in microwaves to cook and heat food. Admitted, the amount of radiation being released is small, but is it significant enough to actually harm us?

The aim of my case study is to decipher a definitive conclusion from a variety of information, statistics and theories from reliable sources. Once complete I hope to have a firm idea of, whether mobile phones are a risk to our health.

Commonly inside a mobile phone, you will find;

A circuit board.
A battery.
An aerial.
A microphone.
A loudspeaker.
A SIM card.
An LCD display.

These components are bound into, the often plastic structure of the phone.

(1)

Microwaves are a type of "electromagnetic" radiation. They’re waves of electrical and magnetic energy moving together through the atmosphere. Electromagnetic radiation ranges from the energetic x-rays to the less energetic radio frequency waves used in broadcasting. Microwaves fall into the radio frequency band of electromagnetic radiation.

Microwaves have three characteristics that allow them to be used in cooking: they are reflected by metal; they pass through glass, paper, plastic, and similar materials; and primarily they are absorbed by foods.

Microwaves have very short length radio waves; they don’t travel very far through the air. This means that phones need ‘booster’ masts to strengthen the signal every 20 miles or so. A phone needs a network of masts. Each one gives signals to ‘phones’ around it. Microwaves have two effects, they can be absorbed by water causing heat so they can heat up living tissue, and they can also cause mutations in your cells if they pass through your body.

(2)

Ionisation is the breaking of chemical bonds holding matter together, releasing ions or electrons from the molecules or atoms, leaving two charged particles or ions: molecules with a net positive charge, and the free electrons with a negative charge. This can occur naturally by dissociation when salts are dissolved in aqueous solutions causing their constituent elements to separate into ions. (3)

The amount of energy required for ionization varies between molecules. X-rays and gamma rays will ionize almost any molecule or atom; far ultraviolet, near ultraviolet and visible light are ionizing to some molecules; microwaves and radio waves are non-ionizing radiation.

Visible light is so common that molecules that are ionized by it will often react spontaneously, unless protected by materials that block the visible spectrum; examples include photographic film and some molecules involved in photosynthesis.

Ionizing radiation has a wide range practical uses, but it is also dangerous to human health.

(4)

Non-ionizing radiation refers to any type of electromagnetic radiation that does not carry enough energy to ionize atoms or molecules - that is, to completely remove an electron from an atom or molecule. (5)

Visible light, near ultraviolet, infrared, microwave and radio waves are all examples ...

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Ionizing radiation has a wide range practical uses, but it is also dangerous to human health.

(4)

Visible light, near ultraviolet, infrared, microwave and radio waves are all examples of non-ionizing radiation, though visible and near ultraviolet can also ionize some molecules. The light from the Sun that reaches the earth is largely composed of non-ionizing radiation, with the notable exception of some ultraviolet rays. However, most ionizing radiation is filtered out by the atmosphere.

Because it is lower energy radiation, the use of this type of radiation in medical fields and everyday life poses fewer health risks than ionizing radiation in forms such as X-ray’. (6)

(7)

Most scientific evidence has found that adverse reactions have found no short term effects but the long term effects are yet unknown for using mobile phones. (8) This alerts the fact that we may not know the exact harmful effects of using mobile phones for years to come, perhaps not for several decades; by this time the potential damage will most likely be too last to rectify.

The following are some of the effects which have been claimed to be linked to excess mobile phone usage:-

Tumours and Cancers

Tumours are most likely to occur on the brain due to the excess use of a mobile phone. Cancer can also be caused by cell structure alternation, alternatively known as mutation.

Other problems associated with microwave radiation include; fatigues, headaches, learning problems, sleep disorders (insomnia) and memory loss. (9) These effects are much more likely to be “emotional”, or linked to extreme over usage, not so much necessarily to the use of a mobile phone alone.

There are a number of ethical and moral issues raised when looking further into the actual mobile phone masts. For instance the mast shown on the right is designed to boost mobile signals up to a 30 mile radius. The mast itself will release microwave radiation constantly, surely this of concern, given that masts are most commonly placed in urban areas.

The mast to the left has been disguised as a tree. Quite obviously this is for aesthetic reasons, mobile phone masts are generally considered ugly, so why not disguise them as something commonly regarded to as beautiful?

The design of these masts is of even greater concern. It is easy for the public to be totally unaware of quite what actually this is, many will simply believe it is a tree. Little do they realise it is emitting microwave radiation around the clock.

The effects I have just described are however, only primary. Secondary effects could range from accidents caused by drivers who are using their mobile phones behind the wheel, to been mugged for your mobile phone or even having mobile phone signals upset hospital equipment by inconsiderate visitors. Although, there are many alternate arguments to balance the case, for instance; imagine you’ve broken down in a desolate area in your car, how useful would a mobile phone be to seek help? Contemporary mobile phones also have many more uses than simply calling and sending SMS’s, we use them for the internet and to store data, something that has made our lives increasingly easier.

"The vast majority of existing studies have not found a link between phones and cancer, and if such a link exists, it is unlikely to be a large one.

The risk of brain cancer is similar in people who use mobile phones compared to those who don't, and rates of this cancer have not gone up in recent years despite a dramatic rise in phone use during the 1980s.

However, not enough is known to totally rule out a risk, and there has been very little research on the long-term effects of using phones." (10)

Always connected Internet Access

As the pace of the life we live increases, we see a greater and greater demand for quick and efficient forms of communicating. Bankers, companies and individuals can now contact anyone, anywhere in the planet instantly and at affordable prices; the technology behind that has totally revolutionised the way we live. Long distance travel has become regarded as lesser of a rarity and more of a commodity, with a large factor of the increasingly accessibility being thanks to mobile technology. When we travel, we can use our mobiles to connect to the internet, to help us find direction and to contact those who we may need to.

Cell Structure and Activity

Radiation causes albumen to leak out of blood cells. This is a potential cause brain damage and decay.

A study of a boy aged 11 and a girl aged 13 in Spain were tested. There brain wave activity was measured during and after mobile phone calls. The study found that both of them had less activity for up to one hour after the call. (11)

Are Children more at risk?

A great deal of articles and studies suggest that children are more at risk; partly due to their skulls been thinner than those of fully grown adults. In turn this means that children can absorb more radiation than adults, up to 60% more radiation energy than adults. Also children’s brains are developing more rapidly and with the increase of the mobile phone culture, they are more susceptible to damage. Children still have a lifetime to go on using mobile phones; this means they are going to carry on absorbing radiation throughout their lives.

In 2000 and 2005, two official inquiries under Sir William Stewart, a former government chief scientist, recommended the use of mobile phones by children should be "discouraged" and "minimised". (12)

Granted, mobile phones are highly convenient and useful; they can save lives in extreme emergencies, but they are not a totally positive product of technology and innovation. They should not be banned, I believe they should less drastically, simply be regulated; for instance, providing more guidance on what exactly the risks connected with them are, perhaps on the box when purchasing a mobile. I have confidence that it is safe to carry on using mobile phones, but to a minimum, and to think of them as a luxury and not to take them for granted – as this will most likely lead to overuse.

There are a few simple cautions that can be taken when using a mobile phone that will dramatically reduce any health risks:-

Do not use your mobile phone more than what is necessary.
Do not hold it close to your ear; try to use an earpiece or hands free when possible.
Keep a distance between you and your mobile phone when sleeping, preferably have it in another room.

The above cautions will reduce the amount of microwaves you come into contact with; this in turn will reduce any health risks. The radiation will simply “spread out” and become significantly less intense.

Despite several theories connecting mobile phone usage to cancer and tumours, there has thus far been to concrete evidence which suggests these are necessarily or 100% factual. Until or if these theories are given scientific evidence, I stick by my theory that there are currently no overly significant risks when using mobile phones.

1. Mobile Planet. [Online] [Cited: August 1, 2011.] http://www.mobileplanet.com/Imagesofyourmobilephone.htm. This website is designed to promote mobile phones, and therefore often only portrays them in a postoive light. I belive the information with regards to mobile phones will be very accurate, but granted it will be bias.

2. Photo Biology. [Online] [Cited: August 1, 2011.] http://www.photobiology.info/Visser-Rolinski.html. This is a website designed to educate with regards science, and therefore I believe it will give a completely fair portrayal.

3. M Power UK. [Online] [Cited: August 8, 2011.] http://www.mpoweruk.com/radio.htm. This site is a website designed to educate regards science, and therefore I believe it will give a completely fair portrayal.

4. E-Radiography. [Online] [Cited: August 11, 2011.] http://www.e-radiography.net/radsafety/rad_physics.htm. This site is a website designed to educate regards science, and therefore I believe it will give a completely fair portrayal.

5. EPA. [Online] [Cited: August 12, 2011.] http://www.epa.gov/radiation/understand/ionize_nonionize.html. This site is a website designed to educate regards science, and therefore I believe it will give a completely fair portrayal.

6. Cancer Org. [Online] [Cited: August 12, 2011.] http://www.cancer.org/Cancer/CancerCauses/OtherCarcinogens/MedicalTreatments/radiation-exposure-and-cancer. This website seems to support the argument that mobile phones are of a great health risk quite heavilly, for no particular factual reason. I believe this site is fairly bias.

7. EPA. [Online] [Cited: August 11, 2011.] http://www.epa.gov/radiation/understand/ionize_nonionize.html. This site is a website designed to educate regards science, and therefore I believe it will give a completely fair portrayal.

8. PSRast. [Online] [Cited: August 13, 2011.] http://www.psrast.org/mobileng/mobilstarteng.htm. This site is a website designed to educate regards science, and therefore I believe it will give a completely fair portrayal.

9. Tuberose. [Online] [Cited: August 15, 2011.] http://tuberose.com/Cell_Phones.html. This site is a website designed to educate regards science, and therefore I believe it will give a completely fair portrayal.

10. BBC. [Online] [Cited: August 15, 2011.] http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-13608444. The BBC is a well known and very well respected orgasnisation, and I have complete faith in the information they provide to the public.

11. Future Pundit. [Online] [Cited: August 15, 2011.] http://www.futurepundit.com/archives/cat_brain_development.html. This site is a website designed to educate regards science, and therefore I believe it will give a completely fair portrayal.

12. Mobile phone use 'raises children's risk of brain cancer fivefold'. Lean, Geoffrey. s.l. : The Independant, 2011. The Indepdendant newspaper is a very well respected newspaper, and I have complete trust in them with regards to providing factual and unbias information.