Children, Cell Phones & Health
An Inconvenient Truth about a Convenient Technology
Once upon a time there was a little girl on a playground who noticed gray smoke pouring out of the windows at a school across the street.
“Fire!” the little girl shouted.
A man sat calmly on a nearby bench. “I don't see any fire,” he said.
“Fire!” the girl cried again.
“But I only see smoke.”
“Fire!” the girl shouted over and over.
A few hours later, the school burned to the ground.
The moral of this story? Where there's smoke, there's a good chance you'll find fire. That's the precautionary principle practiced by most governments in Europe when it comes to the 4.2 billion cell phones in the world, the electromagnetic radiation (EMFs) they emit, and protecting public health. Refusing to adhere to this "better safe than sorry" principle has caused catastrophic health and
“Fire!” the little girl shouted.
A man sat calmly on a nearby bench. “I don't see any fire,” he said.
“Fire!” the girl cried again.
“But I only see smoke.”
“Fire!” the girl shouted over and over.
A few hours later, the school burned to the ground.
The moral of this story? Where there's smoke, there's a good chance you'll find fire. That's the precautionary principle practiced by most governments in Europe when it comes to the 4.2 billion cell phones in the world, the electromagnetic radiation (EMFs) they emit, and protecting public health. Refusing to adhere to this "better safe than sorry" principle has caused catastrophic health and
environmental effects globally, writes David Gee, author of THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE IN THE 20TH CENTURY: Late Lessons from Early Warnings. The book analyzes the dismal failures of governments around the world to respond to early danger signs from carcinogens such as lead, benzene, asbestos, and the depletion of Atlantic fisheries. In fact, David Gee recently testified in Brussels at the European Commission on EMF & Health about the profound danger posed by cell phone radiation, or electropollution, which many scientists are now calling the ”worst toxin in planetary history.”
"All truth passes through three stages: First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident." - Arthur Schopenhauer
Because of this common-sense precautionary principle, France outlawed cell phone ads to children this past January. Many other countries followed suit: Russia's Ministry of Health issued a warning that no child under eighteen should use a cell phone, and pregnant women should avoid them completely. Israel's Health Ministry and Canada's Dept. of Health issued warnings as well. Germany, the UK, Belgium, India, and Finland have all publicly discouraged
children's use of cell phones, too. What are we doing here in the USA? Not long ago, Sprint signed a two billion dollar contract with Disney Corporation to market cell phones to children under twelve. Ironically, the US government makes more money from cell phone minutes than any other product besides oil.
What is the health impact of 4.2 billion microwave emitting devices on the human body and brain; wireless devices that were never pre-market tested for health?
What is the health impact of 4.2 billion microwave emitting devices on the human body and brain; wireless devices that were never pre-market tested for health?
“Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) and radiation damage DNA and enhance cell death rates and therefore they are a ubiquitous, universal genotoxic carcinogen that enhances the rates of cancer, cardiac, reproductive, and neurological disease and mortality in human populations. Therefore there is no safe threshold level...”- Dr. Neil Cherry, Associate Professor of Environmental Health
There is a growing body of evidence – more than 2,000 independent studies worldwide – linking EMFs with serious health issues, from autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, to developmental delays and spectrum disorders like Autism and ADD, to various cancers such as astrocytomas and glioblastomas. Award-winning cancer specialist and
Children, Cell Phones & Health
Issue 9 | October 2009
But this is not an article about giving up your cell phone, cordless phone, laptop, iPod, or Wi-Fi technology. That request would be impossible since 80% of our planet is already wireless. Cell phone towers now decorate the Himalayas.
The health risks posed by smoking and asbestos pale in comparison to cell phone radiation, which produces ICRWs (Information Carrying Radio Waves), precisely because our exposure to ICRWs is completely involuntary. We can choose to walk out of a smoky bar or re-insulate an asbestos laden home. We can no longer avoid electromagnetic radiation. One might say this has become a civil liberties issue because our exposure is non-optional, which may be why parents and teachers in Europe have marched in the streets, demanding wireless be removed from schools.
Microwave radiation, in fact, passes through everything between the cell tower and your phone (or computer) at the speed of light (186,282 miles/second) and is instantaneously absorbed into your body and brain. The compelling research from Dr. Om P. Gandhi, a professor and Chair of Electrical Engineering at the University of Utah, dramatically illustrates this: When adults makes a cell phone call, there is 30% radiation penetration into their brains; 50% radiation penetration into the brain of a 10 year old; 75% radiation penetration into a five-year-old. Professor Leif Salford, who headed the research at Sweden's prestigious Lund University, says “the voluntary exposure of the brain to microwaves from hand held mobile phones is the largest human biological experiment ever.”
Children, Cell Phones & Health
Issue 9 | October 2009
But it’s not just human cells at risk. Dr. Robert Becker, twice Nobel Prize nominee, and Dr. Neil Cherry believe EMFs may be permanently damaging all DNA material, plants and animals included, affecting the genetic integrity of all life on earth.
"I have no doubt that, at the present time, the greatest polluting element in the earth’s environment is the proliferation of electromagnetic fields (EMFs). I consider that to be far greater on a global scale than global warming and the increase in chemical elements in the environment." - Dr. Robert Becker, twice Nobel Prize nominee, author, CROSS CURRENTS: The Promise of Electromedicine, the Perils of Electropollution
Children and teenagers are most at risk due to their developing brains and skulls. Dr. Lennart Hardell, M.D., Ph.D. from Sweden studied teenagers on cell phones and found they are at a five-fold increased risk of brain cancer by the time they reach their mid twenties. (Cordless phone radiation gives them a four-fold risk.) A Spanish study headed up by Dr. Michael Klieeison demonstrated that a two-minute cell phone call disrupted the electrical activity in a child’s brain for up to two hours. How many minutes does our average American teenager spend on a cell phone? Two thousand six
hundred minutes each month.
Fortunately, there are actions you can take to mitigate the harm posed by EMFs. Thomas Jefferson insisted a free society cannot exist with an uninformed public. So whether you’re a parent, teacher, or concerned human being, educating yourself is the first step; then you can make the best decisions to support the long-term well being of your family, and this planet. CALL TO ACTION – Ways to Thrive in a Wireless World
Fortunately, there are actions you can take to mitigate the harm posed by EMFs. Thomas Jefferson insisted a free society cannot exist with an uninformed public. So whether you’re a parent, teacher, or concerned human being, educating yourself is the first step; then you can make the best decisions to support the long-term well being of your family, and this planet. CALL TO ACTION – Ways to Thrive in a Wireless World
- Limit exposure. Use speaker mode or landlines whenever possible.
- Use patented noise field intervention technology on all wireless and wired devices. (Wireless routers, digital alarm clocks, and hair dryers emit high levels of EMFs.)
- Wired headsets act as antennae, tripling the radiation to the head. Use Blue Tube headsets, not unprotected Blue Tooths.
- Never let your child or teen sleep with their cell phone (or any other electronic device). Texting still exposes them to a near-field plume of radiation.
- Unplug or remove all electronics from your child's bedroom.
- Maintain a potent, nutritionally healthy diet and lifestyle.
- Take political action, e.g., write to your congressman, demanding that governments adhere to the standards set by the Bioinitiative Report. (www.bioinitiative.org)
Written by Dr. Carrie Hyman, doctor of Chinese Medicine & Licensed Acupuncturist,
and Marcia Zina Mager, journalist & international author
(MarciaZinaMager.com).For more information, please contact Marcia at 808-778-6117 (mzm@mybiopro.coma) or Dr. Carrie Hyman 323-219-4447.
Children, Cell Phones & Health
Issue 9 | October 2009
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