Tampa Bay New Times Naturally

February 21, 2005

by Iben Klausen

Cellphones emit microwave radiation.

Is this cause for alarm?

Cell Phone Radiation

Serious concern is mounting over the mushrooming use of the handy never-leave-home-without-it mobile cellular telephone, or cell-phone.  These phones are arguably the most radiative appliance humans have yet invented.

It is well known that high levels of RF (Radio Frequency) can produce biological damage through heating effects; this is indeed how your microwave oven cooks your food.  Yet over 190 million Americans are now holding these high-powered transmitters up against their heads.  Is this sensible?  Or is this suicide?

Back in the early 1900s a Russian engineer, Georges Lakhovsky, made an astonishing discovery.  In his book "The Secret of Life" he described how each of the trillions of living cells (in plants, human bodies, bacteria, parasites etc) is nothing but an electromagnetic resonator capable of emitting and absorbing radiations of very high frequency.

What does this mean?  Your body is composed of ions, minerals and a high percentage of water.  A very effective antenna, it is a strong conductor of energy.  Each cell in your body is like a complex bio-computer with energy fields, each second undergoing thousands of biological, biochemical, and electromagnetic changes.  Disturb the normal functioning of these fields, for example by creating an abnormal concentration of electromagnetic waves (as from cell-phones), and it can be disastrous to your health.

EMF (electromagnetic frequency) radiation describes the continually flowing electrons that form invisible fields of energy all around us.  EMF radiation from power lines, appliances, radars, TVs, phones, computers, microwaves, etc. are already considered by many to be potentially hazardous to both mental and physical health.  EMF impulses produce radiation powerful enough to agitate atoms.  At high levels, this creates heat, cooking cells from the inside out - the principle behind microwave ovens.

Robert Becker, an orthopedic surgeon who has used radiation medically, believes that uncontrolled changes in levels of this radiation could lead to slow extinction of many life forms.  It has already led to increasing rates of cancer, nervous disorders, stress, and birth defects.
Radiation seems to target the immune system, nerves, brain, and glands.  It also tends to disturb insulin production, thereby exacerbating blood sugar problems.

Anyone who lives or works within an electromagnetic field is at risk.  CNN, 20/20, 60 Minutes and many others have questioned the Cellular Telephone Industry Association (CTIA) about the results of phone testing.

Autos, trucks, and planes are now also recognized as powerful generators and receivers of EMF radiation.  Spark-plugs emit strong EMF pulses every time they fire, bombarding unsuspecting passengers. No wonder people feel exhausted after long trips.

Irreversibly dependent on electronics, it seems we are at the stage when we cannot abolish electromagnetic radiation.  However, if we do not become aware of the dangers, we will not be able to protect ourselves.

RF (radio frequency) waves are part of the spectrum of EMF waves that travel at light speed and encompass everything from microwaves and cell-phones, up to gamma and X-rays.

So what does RF do to your brain while you're on the phone?

As mentioned, at high levels it can heat cells from the inside out, like a microwave oven, hence alarms over cooking your brain!

The available science in the U.S. does not allow us to conclude that the phones are absolutely safe, or absolutely unsafe. The U.S. government effectively permits the wireless industry to police itself.

Instead, America's cell-phone users must take heed of wireless phone-safety research done outside America, for example by the governments of Britain and France.  As reported in "Parade" magazine, the British Government recommends printed warnings that children under 16 should use cell-phones only when essential, utilize shields, use protection, and keep calls short, because "their still-forming brains or skulls could be more vulnerable."  Although no conclusive proof exists that using cell-phones causes brain tumors or other problems, they say that the risks simply cannot be ruled out.

Cell-phone microwaves can affect youngsters' brain rhythms according to the "Stewart Report," another British study.

Another report in the English medical journal "Lancet" said children are more at risk than adults from memory loss, learning disabilities, sleep disorders, and headaches from the use of cell-phones. Will those who begin using cell-phones in their childhood years be at higher risk for developing brain cancer in their 40s or 50s? So far no answers, but in the meantime there is clear reason for concern.

The cell-phone industry's best-known naysayer is George Carlo, who headed a five-year, $25-million study of possible radiation hazards.  "I just don't want people to put these phones to the sides of their heads," says Carlo, who this year published the scathing, "Cell phones: Invisible Hazards in the Wireless Age."  His data shows much cause for concern, and gained credence when published in Medscape General Medicine, a web-based, peer-reviewed journal.  This paper reports "radio frequency radiation from wireless phones appears to cause genetic damage in human blood" and reveals a "statistically significant increase" in neuro-epithelial brain tumors among cell-phone users.  Carlo parted company with the industry last year, when it enacted none of his recommendations.

Some companies have begun producing a few lower radiation cell-phones, but seem to have no intention of playing up these models.  Cell-phone safety is a touchy, involved subject, not surprising in an industry worth so many billions of dollars.  Yet research is thankfully underway to develop personal depolarizers and/or rectifier devices that protect individuals from EMF waves.  ...

Simple precautions like these could prevent potentially harmful electromagnetic waves penetrating and cooking the brain.  Why take any chances?

Iben Clausen,
Danish-born developer of the Men-la System, travels extensively in Europe teaching the body-mind connection in healing.