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Phones certified by the Cellular Telecommunications And Internet Association (CTIA) are required to provide SAR information to
consumers in the instructional materials that come with the phones.
8.
What has the FDA done to audit the radio frequency energy coming from wireless phones?
After FCC grants permission for a particular cellular telephone to be marketed, FCC will occasionally conduct "post-grant" testing
to determine whether the wireless phone conforms with FCC regulatory requirements. The most important post-grant test, from a
consumer's perspective, is testing of the R emissions of the hone. FCC measures the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) of the
phone, following a very rigorous testing protocol. As is true for nearly any scientific measurement, there is a possibility that the test
measurement may be less than or greater than the actual RF emitted by the phone. This difference between the RF test
measurement and actual RF emission is because test measurements are limited by instrument accuracy because test
measurement and actual use environments are different, and other variable factors. This inherent variability is known as
"measurement uncertainty." When FCC conducts post-grant testing of a wireless phone, FCC takes into account any
measurement uncertainty to determine whether regulatory action is appropriate. This approach ensures that when FCC takes
regulatory action, it will have a sound, defensible scientific basis.
FDA scientific staff reviewed the methodology used by FC to measure wireless phone RF, and agreed it is an acceptable
approach.
9.
What steps can I take to reduce my exposure to radio frequency energy from my wireless phones?
If there is a risk from these products—and at this point we do not know there is—it is probably very small. But if you are concerned
about avoiding even potential risks, you can take a few simple steps to minimize your exposure to radio frequency energy (RF).
Since time is a key factor in how much exposure a person receives, reducing the amount of time spent using a wireless phone will
reduce RF exposure.
If you must conduct 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 measure 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 radio frequency 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.
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