Evidence of health risks from electromagnetic fields (EMF) and wireless technologies has increased substantially since 2007, according to a study by the BioInitiative Working Group.
According to the group, which reviews over 1,800 reports, those most at risk are cellphone users, parents-to-be, young children and pregnant women.
“There is now much more evidence of risks to health affecting billions of people worldwide. The status quo is not acceptable in light of the evidence for harm,“ said David O. Carpenter, medical doctor (MD) and co-editor of the report.
“There is a consistent pattern of increased risk for glioma (a malignant brain tumor) and acoustic neuroma with use of mobile and cordless phones,” said Lennart Hardell, doctor at Orebro University, Sweden. “Epidemiological evidence shows that radiofrequency should be classified as a human carcinogen.
The group said cellphones can also lead to sperm damage, resulting in misshapen sperm and impaired fertility.
It also claims EMF and wireless technology can result in autism.
“While we aggressively investigate the links between autism disorders and wireless technologies, we should minimize wireless and EMF exposures for people with autism disorders, children of all ages, people planning a baby, and during pregnancy,” said Martha Herbert, MD.
“New safety standards are urgently needed for protection against EMF and wireless exposures that now appear everywhere in daily life,” the study said.
HumanIPO reported in February a study claiming mobile phones and EMF do not cause cancer.
The Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research Programme (MTHR), a United Kingdom (UK)-based research project, conducted the study involving “31 individual research projects that… have resulted in almost 60 papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals”, over a span of 11 years.
“Neither of the studies identified any association between exposure and an increased risk of developing cancer. These findings appear to be consistent with the results from other recent studies examining similar endpoints,” the MTHR said.
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