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| Fig. 1: The saviour of excessive exposure to cell phone radiation, the alarm clock. (Source: Wikimedia Commons) |
In today's society, the cell phone is an integral part of many peoples lives. People rely on their cell phones for scheduling, communication, entertainment, and even to wake up in the morning. It is predicted that over 5 billion people own a cellular mobile device, and that 90% of adults who own a mobile phone, have it within an arms reach at all times. Although cell phones seem to be an extremely useful resource for people in our progressive and fast paced society, some research shows that they may also have their dangers. [1]
Cell phones emit radio, which is a form on non-ionising radiation, and typically does very little damage to human cells. And so, although cell phones do not emit more dangerous ionizing radiation, which poses an immediate and substantial threat to human cells and health upon exposure, the accumulation of non-ionising radiation has the potential to pose a threat to human health, by heating the tissue. The dangers of cell phone radiation are particularly difficult to test, as relative experiments may be immoral. There exist mixed opinions on whether or not exposure to the radio emitted by cell phones are to be considered "dangerous" to humans. Nonetheless, there are maximums to the "SAR level" which a cell phone can have. SAR levels are essentially measures of the amount of radiation absorbed by the brain. 1.6 W/kg is currently the highest SAR level allowed for a cellular device. To clarify, using a cell phone with a low SAR level is a suggested guideline by the State of California, as it is believed to reduce potential risk. [2,3]
The formula for protecting yourself from the potential health risks associated with cell phone exposure is relatively simple - the less exposure, the better. Recalling the statistic from earlier above, 90% of adults have their phone almost always by their side. A great way of reducing this percentage, overall exposure time, and the overall risk, is by keeping your phone out of your bedroom at night while you sleep. Although it seems outdated, using a generic alarm clock (see Fig. 1) can not only reduce the exposure time of cell phone radiation, but can also reduce blue light exposure, which can act as a stimulant and negatively affect sleep. [2] In addition, phone functions such as aeroplane mode are also always useful methods of reducing radio exposure time. Aeroplane mode automatically turns off Wi-Fi connection, Bluetooth connection, and cellular connection. [1]
Although the demand and rigour of todays society requires us to be almost dependant on our cellular phones, it is important to be aware of the potential risks of owning a cellular device. Reducing exposure time to the radio emitted by cell phones is always the best method to reduce the risk of having your health affected. With this being said, and with the rate at which technology is advancing, there is hope that one day our society will be addicted to phones or technological devices which pose no risk to the human body, and the health of our society.
© Isaac White. The author warrants that the work is the author's own and that Stanford University provided no input other than typesetting and referencing guidelines. The author grants permission to copy, distribute and display this work in unaltered form, with attribution to the author, for noncommercial purposes only. All other rights, including commercial rights, are reserved to the author.
[1] A. B. El-Bediwi et al., "Effects of Electromagnetic Radiation Produced by Mobile Phone on Some Visceral Organs of Rat," J. Med. Sci. 11, 256 (2011).
[2] A. MacMillan, "Cell Phone Radiation May Be Dangerous, California Health Officials Warn," Time, 18 Dec 17.
[3] D. Davis and E. Durante, Disconnect (Dutton, 2010).
