Title: BIOLOGICAL RESEARCH RELEVANT TO MOBILE TELEPHONY
1- BIOLOGICAL RESEARCH RELEVANT TO MOBILE TELEPHONY
- Joe A. Elder and Mays L. Swicord
- Motorola Florida Research Laboratory
- Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, USA
- II FORO AHCIET MOVIL
- October 5-6, 2004
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
2OUTLINE
- INTRODUCTION
- Statements about RF exposure True or False?
- Terms and definitions
- Electromagnetic spectrum
- STATUS OF BIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
- ICNIRP RADIOFREQUENCY EXPOSURE
- GUIDELINES
- ASSESSMENTS BY HEALTH AUTHORITIES
- AND EXPERT PANELS
- CONCLUSIONS
3TRUE OR FALSE?
- Human exposure to RF energy is a new
environmental exposure. (True or False?) - The study of biological effects of RF energy is a
new science. (True or False?) - All biological effects are health effects. (True
or False?) - Studies reporting nonthermal effects are not used
in standard setting. (True or False?) - Results of one scientific study establish a
health effect. (True or False?) - RF energy and ionizing radiation (e.g., x-rays)
cause similar effects. (True or False?) - Expert scientific groups are consistent in their
conclusion that use of mobile phones does not
cause adverse health effects. (True or False?)
4TERMS AND DEFINITIONS
- Electromagnetic (EM) energy Energy characterized
by having both electric and magnetic fields
(e.g., radiofrequency energy, visible light,
x-rays, etc.). - Radiofrequency (RF) energy EM energy at
frequencies at which radio signals may be
transmitted. RF energy makes radio, television,
radar and mobile telephony possible. - RF Energy Flux Density (Power density)
- Rate of energy transported per cross-sectional
area units are Watts(W)/m2 or mW/cm2. - Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) The rate of
absorption of RF energy in tissue unit is
Watts/kilogram of tissue W/kg.
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6RF RESEARCH
- Research on possible RF health effects dates back
more than 50 years. - This body of research continues to serve as the
basis for exposure standards and public health
assessments around the world.
7EXTENSIVE SCIENTIFIC DATABASE
- 1) WHO Project Database has more than 900
completed or ongoing studies about half used
mobile telephony signals. - 2) Citation Database contains about 2000
publications - More than 1300 of these publications report
biological studies epidemiology, human, animal,
and in vitro studies. - The remaining reports are reviews and engineering
studies. - WHO Project Database and Citation Database are
available to public - http//www.who.int/peh-emf/research/database/en/
8TYPES OF RESEARCH STUDIES
- Epidemiology
- studies of human populations
- Human
- laboratory studies of human volunteers
- Animal
- In Vitro Cells in culture, tissues, solutions
(DNA, RNA, enzymes, etc.)
9Biological Research in RF Database (Peer-reviewed
publications since 1950)
10Long-term Animal Cancer Studies
- All 19 studies published since 1998 have shown no
increase in cancer incidence in animals exposed
to RF energy. - Therefore, earlier studies reporting effects have
not been confirmed by more recent and
well-designed studies with good exposure
assessment. - RF exposure had no effect on lifespan or body
mass (evidence of no sickness and no
life-shortening diseases).
11 WHO RF RESEARCH AGENDA
- In 2003, the WHO Research Agenda was revised to
address the few remaining RF exposure issues. - Research needs being addressed by ongoing and
planned studies. - Research Agenda on WHO website
- http//www.who.int/peh-emf/research/database/en/
12SUMMARY OF SAFETY LEVEL SETTING PROCESS FOR
CHEMICALS AND PHYSICAL AGENTS
- Hazard identification
- For RF energy, thermal effects and
- RF shocks and burns
- Risk analysis
- Determination of hazard threshold, if any
- Determination of uncertainties
- Establishment of limits for adequate protection
13ICNIRP (1998) GUIDELINES
- LIMITS FOR BOTH OCCUPATIONAL AND GENERAL PUBLIC
EXPOSURE - WHOLE-BODY EXPOSURE LIMITS
- (e.g., base station exposure)
- PARTIAL-BODY EXPOSURE LIMITS
- (e.g., exposure from mobile telephones and other
handsets) - ICNIRP International Commission on
- Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection
1410X reduction
50X reduction
10X Safety Margin
50X Safety Margin
15EXPOSURE ASSESSMENT WHOLE-BODY
- To assess human exposure from RF transmitters
such as base stations, - ? the SAR limits are converted to
derived limits e.g., power density (mW/cm2) -
- ? that can be measured in the vicinity of RF
transmitters. -
-
16ICNIRP PARTIAL BODY LIMITS
-
- OCCUPATIONAL GENERAL PUBLIC
- 10 W/kg 2 W/kg
- Occupational limit prevents a 1 oC rise in
tissue temperature. - General public limit allows an additional
safety factor. -
17-
- WHAT DO GOVERNMENTS AND EXPERT PANELS SAY ABOUT
RF RESEARCH AND THE ICNIRP RF EXPOSURE STANDARD?
18GOVERNMENTAL STATEMENTS ON RF SAFETY
- Americas
- Health Canada
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration
- U.S. Federal Communications Commission
- Asia-Pacific Region
- Australian Committee on EM Energy Public Health
Issues - Japanese Ministry of Public Management, Home
Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications - New Zealand Ministry of Health and Ministry of
Environment - Singapore Telecommunications Authority
- Europe, Middle East and Africa
- European Commission
- France Commission for Consumer Safety
- Health Council of The Netherlands
- Swedish State Radiation Protection Authority
- United Kingdom National Radiological Protection
Board - Nordic Authorities (Denmark, Finland, Iceland,
Norway, Sweden)
19INTERNATIONAL AND NONGOVERNMENTAL EXPERT
SCIENTIFIC REVIEWS
- World Health Organization (WHO)
- International Commission on Non-Ionizing
Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) - U.K. Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones
(Stewart Report) - Royal Society of Canada Expert Panel
20GENERAL CONCLUSION FROM GOVERNMENTAL AND
NONGOVERNMENTAL REVIEW GROUPS
- No credible evidence that RF
- exposures below internationally
- accepted limits cause any adverse
- health effects.
21International Commission on Non-Ionizing
Radiation Protection (ICNIRP)
- There is no substantive evidence
- that adverse health effects, including
- cancer, can occur in people exposed
- to levels at or below the limits...
22U.K. Independent Expert Group(Stewart Commission)
- The balance of evidence to date
- suggests that exposures to RF
- radiation below the NRPB and ICNIRP
- Guidelines do not cause adverse
- health effects to the general
- population
23World Health Organization
- A scientific review by WHO ...
- concluded that, from the current
- scientific literature, there is no
- convincing evidence that exposure to
- RF shortens the life span of humans,
- induces or promotes cancer.
24 U.S. Federal Communications Commission
(FCC)
- There is no scientific evidence that
- proves that wireless phone usage can
- lead to cancer or a variety of other
- problems, including headaches,
- dizziness or memory loss.
25U.S. Food and Drug Administration
- The scientific evidence does not
- show a danger to users of wireless
- phones, including children and
- teenagers.
26Health Council of The Netherlands
- sees no reason for recommending
- limiting the use of mobile phones
- by children.
27 Nordic Authorities(Denmark,
Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden)
- The Nordic authorities agree that there is no
scientific evidence for any adverse health
effects from mobile telecommunication systems,
neither from the base stations nor from the
handsets, below the basic restrictions and
reference values recommended by the International
Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection
(ICNIRP).
28KEY POINTS
- No single research paper can definitely answer
any scientific question. - Reports of effects must be subjected to
appropriate scientific scrutiny. - Conclusions must be based on scientific consensus
drawn from cumulative evidence. - The ICNIRP Standard is science-based and provides
substantial margins of safety.
29CONCLUSIONS
- Substantial database on RF studies exists and
continues to grow. - The database has proven sufficient for risk
analysis leading to development of human exposure
limits. - Expert review groups are consistent in their
conclusion that use of mobile telephones does not
cause adverse effects. - Based on the substantial database, it is unlikely
that conclusions by expert groups on the health
effects of RF exposure will change significantly.
30TRUE OR FALSE?
- Human exposure to RF energy is a new
environmental exposure. (True or False?) - The study of biological effects of RF energy is a
new science. (True or False?) - All biological effects are health effects. (True
or False?) - Studies reporting nonthermal effects are not used
in standard setting. (True or False?) - Results of one scientific study establish a
health effect. (True or False?) - RF energy and ionizing radiation (e.g., x-rays)
cause similar effects. (True or False?) - Expert scientific groups are consistent in their
conclusion that use of mobile phones does not
cause adverse health effects. (True or False?)
31MUITO OBRIGADO MUCHAS GRACIAS