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extended conversations by wireless phone every day,
you could place more distance between your body and
the source of the RF, since the exposure level drops
off dramatically with distance. For example, you could
use a headset and carry the wireless phone away from
your body or use a wireless phone connected to a
remote antenna. Again, the scientific data does not
demonstrate that wireless phones are harmful. But if
you are concerned about the RF exposure from these
products, you can use measures like those described
above to reduce your RF exposure from wireless
phone use.
10. What about children using wireless phones?
The scientific evidence does not show a danger to
users of wireless phones, including children and
teenagers. If you want to take steps to lower exposure
to radiofrequency energy (RF), the measures described
above would apply to children and teenagers using
wireless phones. Reducing the time of wireless phone
use and increasing the distance between the user and
the RF source will reduce RF exposure. Some groups
sponsored by other national governments have advised
that children be discouraged from using wireless
phones at all. For example, the government in the
United Kingdom distributed leaflets containing such a
recommendation in December 2000. They noted that
no evidence exists that using a wireless phone causes
brain tumors or other ill effects. Their recommendation
to limit wireless phone use by children was strictly
precautionary; it was not based on scientific evidence
that any health hazard exists.
11. What about wireless phone interference with
medical equipment?
Radiofrequency energy (RF) from wireless phones
can interact with some electronic devices. For this
reason, the FDA helped develop a detailed test method
to measure electromagnetic interference (EMI) of
implanted cardiac pacemakers and defibrillators from
wireless telephones. This test method is now part
of a standard sponsored by the Association for the
Advancement of Medical instrumentation (AAMI). The
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