For Assistance
161
10. What about children using wireless phones?
The scientific evidence does not show a danger to users of wireless phones, including children
and teenagers. If you want to take steps to lower exposure to Radio Frequency (RF) energy, the
measures described above would apply to children and teenagers using wireless phones.
Reducing the time of wireless phone use and increasing the distance between the user and the
RF source will reduce RF exposure. Some groups sponsored by other national governments
have advised that children be discouraged from using wireless phones at all. For example, the
government in the United Kingdom distributed leaflets containing such a recommendation in
December 2000. They noted that no evidence exists that using a wireless phone causes brain
tumors or other ill effects. Their recommendation to limit wireless phone use by children was
strictly precautionary; it was not based on scientific evidence that any health hazard exists.
11. What about wireless phone interference with medical equipment?
Radio Frequency (RF) energy from wireless phones can interact with some electronic devices.
For this reason, the FDA helped develop a detailed test method to measure Electro Magnetic
Interference (EMI) of implanted cardiac pacemakers and defibrillators from wireless telephones.
This test method is now part of a standard sponsored by the Association for the Advancement of
Medical Instrumentation (AAMI). The final draft, a joint effort by the FDA, medical device
manufacturers, and many other groups, was completed in late 2000. This standard will allow
manufacturers to ensure that cardiac pacemakers and defibrillators are safe from wireless phone
EMI. The FDA has tested hearing aids for interference from handheld wireless phones and
helped develop a voluntary standard sponsored by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic
Engineers (IEEE). This standard specifies test methods and performance requirements for
hearing aids and wireless phones so that no interference occurs when a person uses a
“compatible” phone and a “compatible” hearing aid at the same time. This standard was approved
by the IEEE in 2000. The FDA continues to monitor the use of wireless phones for possible
interactions with other medical devices. Should harmful interference be found to occur, the FDA
will conduct testing to assess the interference and work to resolve the problem.
12. Where can I find additional information?
For additional information, please refer to the following resources:
FDA web page on wireless phones
(http://www.fda.gov/cellphones/)
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) RF Safety Program
(http://www.fcc.gov/oet/rfsafety)
International Commission on Non-lonizing Radiation Protection
(http://www.icnirp.de)
World Health Organization (WHO) International EMF Project
(http://www.who.int/emf)
National Radiological Protection Board (UK)
(http://www.hpa.org.uk/radiation/)
