Health and Safety Information 133
Children and Cell Phones
The scientific evidence does not show a danger to any users of
cell phones from RF exposure, including children and teenagers.
The steps adults can take to reduce RF exposure apply to
children and teenagers as well.
•
Reduce the amount of time spent on the cell phone;
•
Use speaker mode or a headset to place more distance between the
head and the cell phone.
Some groups sponsored by other national governments have
advised that children be discouraged from using cell phones at
all. For example, The Stewart Report from the United Kingdom
made such a recommendation in December 2000. In this report,
a group of independent experts noted that no evidence exists that
using a cell phone causes brain tumors or other ill effects. Their
recommendation to limit cell phone use by children was strictly
precautionary; it was not based on scientific evidence that any
health hazard exists.
Additional information on the safety of RF exposures from various
sources can be obtained from the following organizations
(updated 1/1/2010):
•
FCC RF Safety Program:
http://www.fcc.gov/oet/rfsafety/
•
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):
http://www.epa.gov/radiation/
•
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA):
http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/radiofrequencyradiation/index.html
•
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH):
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/
•
World Health Organization (WHO):
http://www.who.int/peh-emf/
•
International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection:
http://www.icnirp.de
•
Health Protection Agency:
http://www.hpa.org.uk/radiation
•
US Food and Drug Administration:
http://www.fda.gov/Radiation-
EmittingProducts/RadiationEmittingProductsandProcedures/
HomeBusinessandEntertainment/CellPhones/default.htm
