iron addict
01-03-2008, 12:34 PM
Why You Simply Can't Believe That Cell Phones Are Safe
fluoroscope, cell phone dangers, radiation, x-rays, cell phone radiation, radio wavesLinked below is an old advertisement for a “shoe-fitting fluoroscope” -- essentially, an X-ray machine used to look at the bones of your foot in order to judge your shoe size.
As little as 60 years ago, these devices were pervasive and thought to be harmless. But by the early 1950s, a number of professional organizations had issued warnings about the continued use of shoe-fitting fluoroscopes -- some thirty years after they were invented and routinely used. Today we know how risky and carcinogenic X-rays can be. One shoe model received such a serious radiation burn from a shoe-fitting fluoroscope that her leg had to be amputated.
Sources:
* Oak Ridge Associated Universities Health Physics Historical Instrumentation Museum Collection July 25, 2007
* Western Journal of Medicine January, 1950; 72(1): 26–30 (The shoe-fitting fluoroscope as a radiation hazard)
Raw Honey
Dr. Mercola Dr. Mercola's Comments:
I hope that it will take us less than thirty years to recognize the major danger resulting from exposure to the explosion of information carrying radio waves around us -- especially from cell phones, but also from WiFi, WiMax, BlueTooth, and other wireless devices. But I am not hopeful as the telecommunications industry is even more powerful than the drug industry, and they simply do not want this information widely known.
Unless you live in some unbelievably remote location, the odds are you’re being bombarded with radio waves that can devastate your body.
The shoe fluoroscopes emitted ionizing radiation but exposure to them was relatively infrequent; only a few times a year. This is quite unlike your exposure to information carrying radio waves where you are likely receiving exposure 24-7.
Why Your Cell Phones Are Dangerous
Let me be VERY clear. The danger from most land-based portable phones, cell phones and WiFi routers is not from the magnetic radiation or the microwave carrier wave from which typical SAR ratings are given on phones. Unless you have massive exposures like you might expect in a microwave oven, these thermal effects are insignificant.
Nearly all the biological damage comes from the modulated signals that are carried ON the carrier microwave. These modulated information carrying radio waves resonate in biological frequencies of a few to a few hundred cycles per second, and can stimulate your cellular receptors causing a whole cascade of pathological consequences that can culminate in fatigue, anxiety and ultimately cancers.
This is a MAJOR problem because in the last few years we have had an exponential increase in exposure to these waves. It took from 1984 to 2004 to reach the first billion cell phones, the second billion took just 18 months, the third billion took only nine months and the fourth billion just six months.
And this does not at all factor in your major exposure to WiFi routers (wireless internet), which are now pervasive. Since there is a lag time of five to 20 years before many of these effects become clinically apparent, now is the time to act before you or your family suffer the damage.
History is Repeating Itself Right in Front of Your Eyes
Depending on your age, you might even remember getting your shoes fitted with one of these fluoroscopes. For many, it’s a vivid childhood memory, as these high-tech shoe-fitters had infiltrated small-town America even before 1930. Yet, it wasn’t until about 1949 that people began asking questions about the radiation doses it was delivering.
The fact that these machines were in wide-spread use throughout the United States before any attention was given to the potential health hazards from its x-ray radiation says a lot about the enduring wish for new technologies to be harmless. How come no one seemed to care about safety testing before unleashing them on the public? Especially since there were warnings about hazards from x-rays within the medical practice?
Today, thanks to declassified government documents, we know quite a bit about how powerful segments of the U.S. Government were – and most likely still are – actively engaged in suppressing information that might cause you to worry about radiation hazards of all kinds. Back then, they suppressed information about radiation fallout from bomb testing and from the work done by certain defense industries, and the radiation exposure from living near these facilities, for example.
The danger of industrial fluoride waste from the bomb- and aluminum industries is another giant cover-up that resulted in the U.S. government-backed water fluoridation policy.
Based on Dr. George Carlo’s accounts of his failed attempts to issue public warnings about the real dangers of cell phone radiation, things have not changed much. And clearly, the wireless industry has no interest in shedding so much as a glimmer of light on the subject.
Are You Already Suffering the Effects and Don’t Even Realize it?
Numerous studies claim there is no biological impact of RF radiation within the cell phone range. Still, researchers in different countries, in different laboratories, are finding disturbing results that point to far greater health implications than anyone is ready for.
Unfortunately, most people fail to correlate common symptoms and health problems to their exposure to cell phones and other radio frequencies, perhaps because these conditions can so easily be attributed to other causes (including so-called “unknown” causes) as well.
Take a look at these common illnesses and ailments, which have all been scientifically linked to cell phone information carrying radio waves:
*
Alzheimer’s, senility and dementia
*
Parkinson’s
*
Autism
*
Fatigue
*
Headaches
*
Sleep disruptions
*
Altered memory function, poor concentration and spatial awareness
Although cancer and brain tumors are most often cited as the potential health risks from cell phone radiation, as you can see, cancer is not the only, or most common danger that you and your cell-phone toting children face.
Be Careful -- Most Headsets Actually Increases Your Health Risk
For some time, the standard recommendation to reduce your radiation exposure was to use a headset. It was thought that since radiation decreases exponentially over the distance between you and the phone, this would solve the problem.
But, newer investigations, and the emergence of wireless earpieces (like Bluetooth) turns this idea upside-down. These headsets may actually intensify your exposure to harmful radiation because the headset itself acts as an antenna, which is now inserted directly into the ear canal. And “wired” headsets are usually little better, since the wire itself can act like an antenna and transmit dangerous radiation to your head. In fact, testing has indicated that your cell phone headset may actually raise the amount of radiation emitted by more than 300 percent!
It's vital that you know the pros and cons of cell phone headsets—especially now that laws requiring "hands-free" cell phone headsets while driving are going in effect all over the U.S.
The British Independent Group on Mobile Phones suggested that headsets are an ideal solution only if they were used with filters to stop the headset wire from acting as an effective antenna. One solution is an air tube headset. These conduct sound, but prevent any radiation from traveling up the wire to your brain.
More Safety Tips to Limit Your Exposure
To date, there are few alternatives to ensure complete safety, but there are some common sense recommendations:
*
Limit the amount of time you spend on the phone.
*
Limit your exposure to WiFi routers. Find out where they are located in your work environment and stay away from them.
*
If you have any land based (non-cellular) portable phones, do NOT use anything other than the 900 MHz phones as the Gigahertz phones stay on continuously, blasting you with information carrying radio waves 24/7.
*
Use the speakerphone instead of putting the phone to your ear; this is probably one of the single most important steps you can take other than not using your cell phone.
*
Use a wired headset to limit your exposure to the cell phone—ideally, an air tube headset which conducts sound but prevents any radiation from traveling up the wire to your brain. Also make sure the wire is SHIELDED which prevents the wire from acting as an antenna which could attract more information carrying radio waves directly to your brain.
*
Limit calls inside buildings.
*
Use the phone in open spaces as often as possible.
*
Limit use by children and preadolescents.
fluoroscope, cell phone dangers, radiation, x-rays, cell phone radiation, radio wavesLinked below is an old advertisement for a “shoe-fitting fluoroscope” -- essentially, an X-ray machine used to look at the bones of your foot in order to judge your shoe size.
As little as 60 years ago, these devices were pervasive and thought to be harmless. But by the early 1950s, a number of professional organizations had issued warnings about the continued use of shoe-fitting fluoroscopes -- some thirty years after they were invented and routinely used. Today we know how risky and carcinogenic X-rays can be. One shoe model received such a serious radiation burn from a shoe-fitting fluoroscope that her leg had to be amputated.
Sources:
* Oak Ridge Associated Universities Health Physics Historical Instrumentation Museum Collection July 25, 2007
* Western Journal of Medicine January, 1950; 72(1): 26–30 (The shoe-fitting fluoroscope as a radiation hazard)
Raw Honey
Dr. Mercola Dr. Mercola's Comments:
I hope that it will take us less than thirty years to recognize the major danger resulting from exposure to the explosion of information carrying radio waves around us -- especially from cell phones, but also from WiFi, WiMax, BlueTooth, and other wireless devices. But I am not hopeful as the telecommunications industry is even more powerful than the drug industry, and they simply do not want this information widely known.
Unless you live in some unbelievably remote location, the odds are you’re being bombarded with radio waves that can devastate your body.
The shoe fluoroscopes emitted ionizing radiation but exposure to them was relatively infrequent; only a few times a year. This is quite unlike your exposure to information carrying radio waves where you are likely receiving exposure 24-7.
Why Your Cell Phones Are Dangerous
Let me be VERY clear. The danger from most land-based portable phones, cell phones and WiFi routers is not from the magnetic radiation or the microwave carrier wave from which typical SAR ratings are given on phones. Unless you have massive exposures like you might expect in a microwave oven, these thermal effects are insignificant.
Nearly all the biological damage comes from the modulated signals that are carried ON the carrier microwave. These modulated information carrying radio waves resonate in biological frequencies of a few to a few hundred cycles per second, and can stimulate your cellular receptors causing a whole cascade of pathological consequences that can culminate in fatigue, anxiety and ultimately cancers.
This is a MAJOR problem because in the last few years we have had an exponential increase in exposure to these waves. It took from 1984 to 2004 to reach the first billion cell phones, the second billion took just 18 months, the third billion took only nine months and the fourth billion just six months.
And this does not at all factor in your major exposure to WiFi routers (wireless internet), which are now pervasive. Since there is a lag time of five to 20 years before many of these effects become clinically apparent, now is the time to act before you or your family suffer the damage.
History is Repeating Itself Right in Front of Your Eyes
Depending on your age, you might even remember getting your shoes fitted with one of these fluoroscopes. For many, it’s a vivid childhood memory, as these high-tech shoe-fitters had infiltrated small-town America even before 1930. Yet, it wasn’t until about 1949 that people began asking questions about the radiation doses it was delivering.
The fact that these machines were in wide-spread use throughout the United States before any attention was given to the potential health hazards from its x-ray radiation says a lot about the enduring wish for new technologies to be harmless. How come no one seemed to care about safety testing before unleashing them on the public? Especially since there were warnings about hazards from x-rays within the medical practice?
Today, thanks to declassified government documents, we know quite a bit about how powerful segments of the U.S. Government were – and most likely still are – actively engaged in suppressing information that might cause you to worry about radiation hazards of all kinds. Back then, they suppressed information about radiation fallout from bomb testing and from the work done by certain defense industries, and the radiation exposure from living near these facilities, for example.
The danger of industrial fluoride waste from the bomb- and aluminum industries is another giant cover-up that resulted in the U.S. government-backed water fluoridation policy.
Based on Dr. George Carlo’s accounts of his failed attempts to issue public warnings about the real dangers of cell phone radiation, things have not changed much. And clearly, the wireless industry has no interest in shedding so much as a glimmer of light on the subject.
Are You Already Suffering the Effects and Don’t Even Realize it?
Numerous studies claim there is no biological impact of RF radiation within the cell phone range. Still, researchers in different countries, in different laboratories, are finding disturbing results that point to far greater health implications than anyone is ready for.
Unfortunately, most people fail to correlate common symptoms and health problems to their exposure to cell phones and other radio frequencies, perhaps because these conditions can so easily be attributed to other causes (including so-called “unknown” causes) as well.
Take a look at these common illnesses and ailments, which have all been scientifically linked to cell phone information carrying radio waves:
*
Alzheimer’s, senility and dementia
*
Parkinson’s
*
Autism
*
Fatigue
*
Headaches
*
Sleep disruptions
*
Altered memory function, poor concentration and spatial awareness
Although cancer and brain tumors are most often cited as the potential health risks from cell phone radiation, as you can see, cancer is not the only, or most common danger that you and your cell-phone toting children face.
Be Careful -- Most Headsets Actually Increases Your Health Risk
For some time, the standard recommendation to reduce your radiation exposure was to use a headset. It was thought that since radiation decreases exponentially over the distance between you and the phone, this would solve the problem.
But, newer investigations, and the emergence of wireless earpieces (like Bluetooth) turns this idea upside-down. These headsets may actually intensify your exposure to harmful radiation because the headset itself acts as an antenna, which is now inserted directly into the ear canal. And “wired” headsets are usually little better, since the wire itself can act like an antenna and transmit dangerous radiation to your head. In fact, testing has indicated that your cell phone headset may actually raise the amount of radiation emitted by more than 300 percent!
It's vital that you know the pros and cons of cell phone headsets—especially now that laws requiring "hands-free" cell phone headsets while driving are going in effect all over the U.S.
The British Independent Group on Mobile Phones suggested that headsets are an ideal solution only if they were used with filters to stop the headset wire from acting as an effective antenna. One solution is an air tube headset. These conduct sound, but prevent any radiation from traveling up the wire to your brain.
More Safety Tips to Limit Your Exposure
To date, there are few alternatives to ensure complete safety, but there are some common sense recommendations:
*
Limit the amount of time you spend on the phone.
*
Limit your exposure to WiFi routers. Find out where they are located in your work environment and stay away from them.
*
If you have any land based (non-cellular) portable phones, do NOT use anything other than the 900 MHz phones as the Gigahertz phones stay on continuously, blasting you with information carrying radio waves 24/7.
*
Use the speakerphone instead of putting the phone to your ear; this is probably one of the single most important steps you can take other than not using your cell phone.
*
Use a wired headset to limit your exposure to the cell phone—ideally, an air tube headset which conducts sound but prevents any radiation from traveling up the wire to your brain. Also make sure the wire is SHIELDED which prevents the wire from acting as an antenna which could attract more information carrying radio waves directly to your brain.
*
Limit calls inside buildings.
*
Use the phone in open spaces as often as possible.
*
Limit use by children and preadolescents.