Unraveling the Controversy: The Truth Behind the Safety of Mobile Phones

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the safety of mobile phones, particularly concerning radiation exposure and its potential effects on health, including fertility. Participants explore various claims and studies related to these concerns, as well as the reliability of information available on the topic.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express concern over mobile phone radiation and its potential link to reduced sperm count, referencing a newspaper article that claims men carrying phones in their pockets may produce 30% less sperm.
  • Others argue that mobile phones emit minimal radiation when not in use and suggest that the distance from the body mitigates any potential risks to fertility.
  • One participant mentions ongoing tests on cell phones that have not detected harmful effects from radiation since 1990.
  • A participant cites a study linking mobile phones to sperm damage but notes that fertility experts have dismissed the findings as inconclusive and call for more research.
  • Some participants draw parallels between the mobile phone safety debate and past controversies regarding power lines and microwave ovens causing cancer, suggesting a pattern of misinformation.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a mix of concerns and reassurances regarding the safety of mobile phones. While some agree on the need for caution and further research, others challenge the validity of the claims about health risks, indicating that the discussion remains unresolved with multiple competing views.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include the reliance on outdated information and the inconclusive nature of some studies referenced. There is also a noted dependence on the definitions of safety and health risks, which remain ambiguous in the discussion.

Hyperreality
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Are Mobile Phones Safe?

There seems to be a lot of controversies around the safety of mobile phones, for instance the radiation and heating on skin cells. What is more puzzlikng is that a recent article appeared in my local newspaper claimed, men who carry mobile phone in their pockets produce 30% less sperm than usual men. Where can I find up to dated information on this issue? Most information I found on google are out of date around about 1999.
 
Computer science news on Phys.org
If those news are true, I might get rid of my phone. :eek:
 
Your cell phone hardly emits any radiation at all while not being used. Having it in your pocket, separated from your testicles by several inches of leg flesh, is absolutely not going to cause any sort of problems for your fertility. The human body is mostly water, and microwaves hardly penetrate water.

The arguments about having them near your head are more plausible, but it remains that there is no scientifically valid data correlating cell phone use and any sort of brain disease. If you're that concerned, put the phone in a backpack and use a headset.

- Warren
 
I agree with chroot and buy a headset, they are becoming more popular and fashionable. I know ongoing tests on cell phones are being done and they have yet to detect any harmful effects from the radiation using any cell phone after like 1990 ;)
 
This may be the source of the news article.
Sperm count, cell phone link dismissed
Results uncertain, other factors overlooked


LONDON, England (Reuters) -- Mobile phones may damage men's sperm, Hungarian scientists say, in a study that fertility experts dismissed Monday as inconclusive...

...Fejes said more research is needed to support the findings, which will be reported to this week's conference in Berlin of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology.

Professor Hans Evers, a past president of the society, said the results are interesting but far from conclusive.[continued]

http://www.cnn.com/2004/HEALTH/06/28/mobiles.sperm.reut/
 
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just be sure you don't buy a Bluetooth headset ... :biggrin:
 
I'll go a step further than warren and greg - this is an off-shoot of the "power lines cause cancer" (and "microwave ovens cause cancer") hoax perpetrated by a devious reporter some years ago.
 

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