Cell Phone Trap

Joel S. Hirschhorn --It is now inconceivable that our
world could function without the 5 billion cell phones used globally.  The new book by Devra Davis “Disconnect”
deserves your attention.  Indeed, if
you use a cell phone a lot it should be mandatory reading. 

It also seems inconceivable that
the trillion dollar cell phone industry and governments worldwide could have
pushed this technology without ever having solid research results proving the
safety of cell phones.  If true that
would be deadly frightening.  But
that is exactly the reality.

Is this a bizarre slip up or an
intentional conspiracy between corporate and government interests?  The more you learn the more you fear.
Nightmarishly, cell phone
technology has become too big to fail, no matter its deadly risks.  Government won’t protect you, so you
have to protect yourself.

Let me note that I rarely use my
cell phone.  Very few people have my
number and I rarely turn it on, except when I need to make a call.  As a former professor of engineering I
have always seen technology as offering risks, not just heavily commercialized
benefits.  The risks are often
dismissed, poorly studied or just plain ignored. 

And by now everyone should be
concerned that neither government regulations nor corporate responsibility
protect us very well from harmful foods, prescription drugs and manufactured
products.

Facing the truth is often
painful, but if you care about protecting your health and the health of people
you love, then this is a book you definitely want to read and get others to
read.  Make no mistake, what you
learn will upset you, but beyond getting angry at companies and the government
for not adequately protecting against a man made public health disaster, you
will be motivated to change your behavior.
The subtitle sums up the theme: The Truth About Cell Phone Radiation,
What the Industry Has Done to Hide It, and How to Protect Your Family.

Here are some of the eye-popping
facts and insights I picked up from reading of this book.

Tests show young men who keep
their phones in a pants pocket have reduced sperm counts.

Some scientists have, for
decades, known about the adverse effects that radiofrequency causes in the
brain.  For example, radiofrequency
allows chemicals and toxins from the blood, which are normally kept away from
the nervous system, to enter the brain and cause disease.

The work of Dr. Lennart Hardell
in Sweden
should make cell phone users reconsider their practices.  Swedes who have used cell phones the
most and for the longest times have more malignant brain tumors than
others.  After a decade of use the
risk of brain tumors is doubled.
Similar results were found by scientists in Israel, Finland, Russia and England.  Hardell has also found that teenagers
using cell phones end up after a decade with four times more brain cancers.

The book highlights what the
distinguished research scientist Dariusz Leszczynski said: “we clearly showed
that radiation from a phone had a biological impact.  After this work, which in fact repeated
that of many others…the world could no longer pretend that the only problems
with cell phones occurred after you could measure a change in temperature.  This view was always mistaken, of
course, and our work showed that.”
In other words, much lower power than in microwave ovens does not mean
the absence of effects on our bodies.

Davis makes the inescapable point at the end of
the book that “we need to invest in cell phones’ safety as we do with other
modern technologies.”  But it is not
clear whether that is proceeding as it should.  Do you think industry and government
will do the right thing and risk getting research results that could devastate
cell phone usage?  With corporate
interests corrupting Congress it is highly unlikely that what is needed in terms
of research and regulation will happen.

What should cell phone users
do?  They and children in particular
should not be using cell phones without "ear buds."  They should not keep cell phones that
are turned on in their clothing next to their body.  Use the speaker option.  Recognize that texting and other phone
functions can be less dangerous than holding a phone next to your head to
hear.  Remember that cordless phones
also pose similar radiation hazards, so minimize their use at home.

I wonder whether the richest and
most powerful people in society, like President Obama (and his children), have
been strongly advised to not hold cell phones next to the head.

Bottom line: Your addiction to
cell phone use just might be your downfall.  How much risk do you want to take?  Smart phones are the rage.  Now we need a lot more smart
people.  Disconnect.  The more you use your cell phone, the
more trapped you are.



[Contact Joel S. Hirschhorn
through delusionaldemocracy.com.]