Consumer Reports (CR) has just issued what it calls “common-sense precautions when using your cell phone” which include the following:

“Specifically, CR recommends these steps:

• Try to keep the phone away from your head and body. That is particularly important when the cellular signal is weak — when your phone has only one bar, for example — because phones may increase their power then to compensate.
• Text or video call when possible.
• When speaking, use the speaker phone on your device or a hands-free headset.
• Don’t stow your phone in your pants or shirt pocket.  Instead, carry it in a bag or use a belt clip.”

SkyVision Solutions is gratified that Consumers Union, a major consumer advocacy organization, has decided to alert consumers on potential health risks related to cell phone use.  At least it is progress in the right direction.

It must be recognized, however, that the CR precautions are narrowly focused on cell phone use and only stem from the possible risk of cancer, not from other medical conditions that might be caused or aggravated by exposure to radiofrequency (RF) radiation.

Consumer Reports also issued “A Call for Clarity”:

“The substantial questions raised regarding cell phones deserve some clear answers:

• The Federal Communications Commission’s cell-phone radiation test is based on the devices’ possible effect on large adults, though research suggests that children’s thinner skulls mean they may absorb more radiation.
• Consumer Reports agrees with concerns raised by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Government Accountability Office about the tests, and thinks that new tests should be developed that take into account the potential vulnerability of children.
• We think that cell-phone manufacturers should prominently display advice on steps that cell-phone users can take to reduce exposure to cell-phone radiation.”

More consistent with the broad-based risks that RF exposure actually presents, please refer to one of the recent articles at this website, like New Study Suggests Wireless Devices Linked to Many Health Risks.  In that article from August, SkyVision Solutions quoted the conclusion of a study published in the journal of Electromagnetic Biology & Medicine that:

“RFR [is] a potentially hazardous factor for human health.  We suggest minimizing the intensity and time of RFR exposures, and taking a precautionary approach towards wireless technologies in everyday human life.”

Let’s hope that with time Consumer Reports will issue similar health-related precautions for all wireless devices and not just due to the single medical pathology of cancer.

Primary Source Material for this Article

For the full Consumer Reports article, please refer to: “Does Cell-Phone Radiation Cause Cancer?”, at http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/smartphones/cell-phone-radiation.

It is noted that the version of the above Consumer Reports article which was included in the November 2015 issue of its hardcopy magazine was less direct in its title and somewhat contradictory to the subject matter.  One page says, “Good Vibrations?  Radiation is part of our daily lives.  We’ve made our peace with some sources — but the risk from cell phones is still being debated.”