SAFETY

with increasing distance from the source. The so- called “cordless phones,” which have a base unit connected to the telephone wiring in a house, typically operate at far lower power levels, and thus produce RF exposures far below the FCC safety limits.

4. What are the results of the research done already?

 

The research done thus far has produced conflicting

 

results, and many studies have suffered from flaws in

 

their research methods. Animal experiments

 

investigating the effects of Radio Frequency (RF)

 

energy exposures characteristic of wireless phones

 

have yielded conflicting results that often cannot be

 

repeated in other laboratories. A few animal studies,

 

however, have suggested that low levels of RF could

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accelerate the development of cancer in laboratory

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animals. However, many of the studies that showed

T Y

increased tumor development used animals that had

 

 

been genetically engineered or treated with cancer-

 

causing chemicals so as to be pre-disposed to

 

develop cancer in the absence of RF exposure. Other

 

studies exposed the animals to RF for up to 22 hours

 

per day. These conditions are not similar to the

conditions under which people use wireless phones, so we do not know with certainty what the results of such studies mean for human health. Three large epidemiology studies have been published since December 2000. Between them, the studies investigated any possible association between the use of wireless phones and primary brain cancer, glioma, meningioma, or acoustic neuroma, tumors of the brain or salivary gland, leukemia, or other cancers. None of the studies demonstrated the existence of any harmful health effects from wireless phone RF exposures. However, none of the studies can answer questions about long-term exposures, since the average period of phone use in these studies was around three years.

5.What research is needed to decide whether RF exposure from wireless phones poses a health risk?

A combination of laboratory studies and epidemiological studies of people actually using wireless phones would provide some of the data that are needed. Lifetime animal exposure studies could be completed in a few years. However, very large numbers of animals would be needed to provide reliable proof of a cancer promoting effect if one

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LG Electronics 355 manual What are the results of the research done already?, Their research methods. Animal experiments