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Health Quick Facts
- When it comes to your wireless device, rest assured that the scientific evidence and expert reviews from leading global heath organizations such as the American Cancer Society, National Cancer Institute, World Health Organization and the United States Food and Drug Administration reflect a consensus based on published impartial scientific research showing there is no reason for concern.
- Several federal agencies have reviewed and endorsed the FCC's guidelines including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
More Information from the Experts:
For more on the government guidelines for exposure levels, and how they might pertain to wireless use, please visit the FDA’s site.
Health
In each of our everyday lives we are all surrounded by electronics; regardless if we use them or not. CTIA and the wireless industry are deeply committed to safety and to providing timely, accurate information to consumers about wireless phones.
When learning the facts about cell phones and health-related effects, the industry relies on the conclusions of impartial groups such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the World Health Organization (WHO), the American Cancer Society, and the National Institute of Health, which have all concluded that the scientific evidence to date does not demonstrate any adverse health effects associated with the use of wireless phones. More >
In addition, CTIA and the wireless industry work directly with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to comply with the strict safety guidelines that require compliance for all wireless devices in the US. The FCC established very conservative limits to ensure that the health of all citizens is protected.
The Basics
Wireless devices emit low levels of radiofrequency energy (RF) while turned on. RF is simply another word for radio waves. It is a form of electromagnetic energy like gamma rays, x-rays and light. Other technologies that use RF are cordless phones, radios, microwaves and TV broadcasting.
To date, the available scientific evidence does not show that any health problems are associated with using wireless phones. Many studies of low-level RF exposure, such as that which occurs with wireless devices, have not discovered any negative biological effects. Some studies have suggested such a connection, but their findings have not been replicated or supported in additional research.
FCC Guidelines. More >
Research teams in the participating countries have published results from their studies. In a statement 
, International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) said the “individual national and multinational results published thus far do not indicate an elevation of the risk of cancers in the head with cell phones within 10 years of first use.” To create a more statistically robust analysis, the research teams have pooled data from their individual national studies. A final report based on this information is pending.
The number of studies examining the health effects of long-term exposure (more than ten years) to RF from mobile phones is limited. The International Cohort Study of Mobile Phone Users (COSMOS) will monitor 250,000 test subjects from Denmark, Finland, Sweden and the United Kingdom for more than 25 years. Information will be collected about mobile phone usage and potential health effects, including risk factors for tumors and neurological diseases.
Even as research continues worldwide, wireless devices must adhere to strict emissions guidelines in the United States, which are developed under a thorough and rigorous review process. Of note:
- All wireless base station antennas and phones must meet the science-based, RF emission guidelines of the FCC, which established very conservative limits to ensure that the health of all citizens is protected.
- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has stated that continuous human exposure to RF fields up to and including 100 percent of the FCC limit is considered safe.
- Several federal agencies have reviewed and endorsed the FCC's guidelines including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
- In 1999, the EPA concluded: “It (is) EPA’s view that the FCC exposure guidelines adequately protect the public from all scientifically established harms that may result from RF energy fields generated by FCC Licensees.”
Wireless Devices
Scientists and the Federal government have been studying the biological affects of RF for years and have thus established guidelines that restrict RF levels to a safe and usable level for technologies the general public uses in their everyday lives.
The guidelines for wireless devices were established by the FCC, with the help of the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Their recommendations were developed by leading science and engineering experts from industry, government, and academia, and extensive review of the scientific literature related to the biological effects of RF energy.
Cell Towers
It is also important to note that the FCC has also established guidelines for wireless base stations according to the recommendations of expert organizations that have resulted in the endorsement of government agencies responsible for health and safety.
The wireless industry adheres to these guidelines as well and has succeeded in creating and maintaining towers whose ground-level exposures are typically thousands of times less than the exposure limits adopted by the FCC.
