June 16, 2008 – The Dr David Servan-Schreiber and 19 scientists have issued recommendations on cell phone use.
Their message is simple: in the absence of definitive conclusions proving the harmless nature of the cellphone for long-term health (more than 10 years), it is important to adopt precautionary measures regarding its use.
Here are their ten recommendations1 :
- Do not allow children under 12 to use a cell phone, except in an emergency.
- Whenever possible, keep the phone more than one meter from your body during communications using speakerphone mode, a “hands-free” device or a headset.
- Stay more than a meter away from a person on a call and avoid using a mobile phone in public places such as the subway, train or bus where we passively expose our close neighbors to the electromagnetic field of our device.
- Avoid carrying a mobile phone with you as much as possible, even on standby. Do not leave it near our body at night (under the pillow or on the bedside table), especially in the case of pregnant women.
- If you have to wear it, make sure that the “keyboard” side is directed towards our body and the “antenna” side (maximum field strength) towards the outside.
- Use the cell phone only to establish contact or for conversations lasting only a few minutes.
- When using a cell phone, you must change sides regularly and, before putting the cell phone to your ear, you must wait until the caller has picked up.
- Avoid using a laptop when signal strength is weak or when traveling by car or train at high speed.
- Instead, communicate by text messaging (SMS, short message service) in order to limit exposure to harmful emissions from mobile phones.
- Choose a device with the lowest possible SAR in relation to our needs (the “specific absorption rate” measures the power absorbed by the body).
Answer our question Do you think your cell phone is a threat to your health? and give your comment.
Pierre Lefrançois – PasseportSanté.net
According to AFP and the Sunday newspaper.
1. The recommendations are taken from the site: www.guerir.org [Consulté le 16 juin 2008].
