Exposure to radio waves have become the favorite subject of researchers in the last few decades as our dependence on phones and wireless gadgets have increased.
From the mild effects of radio frequency on brain health to the ‘frying of brains’ theory claimed by social media, the effect of mobile phones on cognitive health has been weighed in every possible way.
However, a new review study has something different to say.
WHO review study says there is no link between brain cancer and mobile phone
There is no link between the use of mobile phones and any increase in the risk of brain cancer, a new World Health Organization-commissioned review of available published evidence from around the world has demonstrated.
The review was based on 63 studies dating from 1994-2022, contributed by 11 investigators from 10 countries, including the Australian government’s radiation protection authority.
The review study analysed the effect of radiowaves generated by human made devices like mobile phones, TV on the human brain.
“None of the major questions studied showed increased risks,” co-author Mark Elwood, professor of cancer epidemiology at the University of Auckland, New Zealand said. The review examined brain tumours in adults and children, and cancer of the pituitary gland, salivary glands and leukaemia, associated with the use of mobile phones and other wireless gadgets; it also included occupational exposure.
Radio waves are carcinogenic
Radio waves are currently classified as “possibly carcinogenic”, or class 2B, by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a category used when the agency cannot rule out a potential link.
“If RF radiation is absorbed by the body in large enough amounts, it can produce heat. This can lead to burns and body tissue damage. Although RF radiation is not thought to cause cancer by damaging the DNA in cells the way ionizing radiation does, there has been concern that in some circumstances, some forms of non-ionizing radiation might still have other effects on cells that might somehow lead to cancer,” the American Cancer Society.
Radio wave exposure
Human beings are exposed to radio waves from various sources. The natural sources of radio waves are the sun, lightning strikes and the earth (a tiny fraction of radiation from earth is radio frequency).
Along with this, human made sources like TV signals, mobile phones, radar, WiFi, Bluetooth devices, radiofrequency ablation which is used to destroy tumors, welding and a type of full body scanner also expose radio waves to humans.
Understanding Brain Tumor Diagnosis