The World Health Organisation (WHO) has published advice on the use of mobile phones. It concludes that there is no scientific evidence that the low-level radio frequency (RF) fields from mobile phones can damage your health, but there are still some gaps in scientific knowledge and further research is needed. Read the WHO conclusions and recommendations.
The International Commission for Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) has issued guidelines on levels of exposure to RF fields, including that from mobile phones and base stations. These are based on published scientific findings and include a safety margin. Exposure is measured using the specific absorption rate (SAR) – the amount of energy from an RF field absorbed by the human body.
All the mobile phones we sell comply with the guidelines, and we require manufacturers to test that this is the case. The maximum SAR value is provided when a new mobile phone is bought. However, estimating the actual exposure from a mobile phone when it is being used is a complex business, and buying a mobile phone with a lower maximum SAR value does not guarantee reduced exposure.
There are many factors which influence the level of RF exposure from a mobile phone. These include:
- The distance between the person and the mobile phone
- The distance from the base station
- The landscape between the mobile phone and the base station
- The way the mobile phone is being used.
Mobile phones use the minimum RF field strength needed to communicate with the base station. This automatically adjusts when the signal from the base station is weaker. The better the signal from the base station, the lower the RF field strength from the mobile phone.