Doctors Say Kids Have Higher Cancer Risk from Mobile Device Radiation

Doctors Say Kids Have Higher Cancer Risk from Mobile Device RadiationThe American Academy of Pediatrics wrote a letter in late August addressing both the Federal Communications Commission and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, urging both agencies to adopt new standards regarding cell phone radiation. The letter highlights some shocking facts about cell phone radiation and what that means for our children.

Today reports, “Earlier this year 190 independent scientists representing 39 countries (including the United States) appealed to global health organization to strengthen cellphone guidelines and ensure the public be “fully informed about the potential health risks from electromagnetic energy.”” Their concerns are legitimate – and here’s why.

Things have changed drastically

The FCC issues and maintains mandatory radiation exposure limits for wireless and mobile devices. The last time that these guidelines were updated was in 1996. That’s almost 20 years ago. To give you an idea of what the world was like back then (technologically speaking, that is), take a look at this list from Pingdom Royal:

  • Google.com didn’t exist yet.
  • In January 1996 there were only 100,000 websites, compared to more than 160 million in 2008.
  • The web browser of choice was Netscape Navigator.”
  • A top-of-the-line Dell computer cost as much as $4,400.
  • A Motorola StarTAC cost $1,000.
  • Americans sent 0.4 texts per month in 1995.
  • Statista.com tells us that a mere 16% of the population had mobile subscription plans.

Today, 104% of the population has a subscription plan, meaning that for the first time ever, mobile devices outnumber people in our country. To make matters worse, the usage rates of mobile devices have skyrocketed; instead of using them to make periodic phone calls, we use them for absolutely everything.

The AAP wants the FCC to revise their radiation standards for good reason. “Children are not little adults,” Dr. Gisela Mercada-Deane, chair of radiology at the American Academy of Pediatrics, said. “The amount of radio frequency that children will be exposed by the time they are our age [an adult] is exponential to the amount of radiation, radio frequencies that we ourselves are being exposed to in a lifetime.”

The article in Today lists some great ways to limit exposure to cell phone radiation. However, these efforts aren’t enough. Until the regulations are changed to reflect the way that our children and we use cellphones, there is an increased risk of developing cancer from constant exposure to our connected devices.

At McGowan, Hood, Felder & Phillips, LLC, we take safety seriously. We’re concerned about the well being of you and your loved ones; that’s why we share information that we think is important. If you have any questions, or would like to schedule a free consultation at one of our law offices throughout South Carolina, please contact us today.