Government to Possibly Fund Study of the Health Effects of Cell Phone Use | DC Metro Area Personal Injury Law Blog

In The Hill’s (7/1) “Healthwatch” blog, Mike Lillis notes that, “Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) on Wednesday said he’ll soon introduce legislation to monitor the health effects of cell phone use.” The bill would “launch a national research program to study any such effects.” Kucinich, who chairs the House Oversight Committee’s subpanel on domestic policy, believes that a government-funded research program would have less bias than studies funded by the phone companies themselves.

Cell phones emit radiation in the form of radio waves to enable communication. The FCC’s guidelines for Specific Absorption Rate were set in 1997 at 1.6 watts per kilogram of tissue. There is debate over the safety of that standard as it relates to high-use of cell phones since daily usage is increasing. Also, there has been little research into the highest growing segment of cell phone users–children. The developing brains and bodies of children are more prone to long-term damage than those of other age groups.

The results from this potential study could shed light on unidentified safety aspects of cell phones for the public.