Cancer Risk Doubt Over Mobile Phones

Mobile phones have not been found to be associated with any biological or adverse health effects, according to the UK's largest investigation into the possible health risks from using them.

The Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research (MTHR) Programme published the conclusions of their six-year research programme as part of its 2007 report.

Researchers found no association between short-term mobile phone use and brain cancer.

Studies on volunteers also showed no evidence that brain function was affected by mobile phone signals or the signals used by the emergency services and the MTHR programme management committee believes there is no need to support further work in this area.

The research programme also studied electrical hypersensitivity and found no evidence that the unpleasant symptoms, which include headaches, dizziness and tingling, experienced by sufferers were the result of exposure to signals from mobile phones or base stations.

However, researchers said that the situation for longer-term exposure was less clear as studies have so far only included a limited number of participants who have used their phones for ten years or more and the committee recommended that more research needed to be conducted in this area.

The programme also investigated whether mobile phones might affect cells and tissue beyond simply heating them, but the results showed no evidence of this and the committee said that it believed that no further work was needed in this area.

Professor Lawrie Challis, Chairman of MTHR, said: "This is a very substantial report from a large research programme. The work reported today has all been published in respected peer-reviewed scientific or medical journals. The results are so far reassuring, but there is still a need for more research, especially to check that no effects emerge from longer-term phone use from adults and from use by children."

(KMcA/SP)