MOBILES - Talking happy talk

From their infamous beginnings as every yuppie's executive toy, mobile phones have become an integral part of working life. But how worried should we be about the reported health risks?

Most executives have enough worries to give them a headache withoutile phones have become an integral part of working life. But how worried should we be about the reported health risks? needing to carry a machine in their pockets that will make them ill. Yet this is exactly what they are doing, according to those who are concerned about the possible health risks of mobile phones.

Scientist Roger Coghill, director of Coghill Research Laboratories and a long-time campaigner against electronic hazards, explains the potential problems. 'The first symptom is very severe headaches for no reason,' he says. 'People then realise they feel tired all the time and get short-term memory loss. After about 12 months, some people notice they have a lump on their neck, which is a lymphoma - a cancer of the lymph nodes.'

One early victim was window manufacturer and amateur inventor Les Wilson, who became concerned about his mobile phone about five years ago. 'The side of my face would go numb and I'd get headaches on the side where I used the phone,' he says. Wilson still suffers short-term memory loss, although the other symptoms have abated. The experience prompted him to develop the Microshield, a black leather case designed to cut out most of the radiation emitted by a mobile phone (see box).

Thousands of others have reported symptoms, including headaches and migraines; eye, ear and throat pains; tingling, burning, numbness or soreness on one side of the face, head or neck; nausea and dizziness; feelings of stress, confusion or tiredness; short-term memory loss and pain or heating in teeth, particularly ones with metal fillings or bridges. A few have reported tumours, either behind the ear or on the neck, on the side where they hold their phones.

It has been suggested that the problem of resonance, when radio waves of a critical frequency can cause harmful vibrations, has possible links with epilepsy, Alzheimer's, asthma and leukemia.

Sweden's National Institute of Working Life sent questionnaires to mobile phone users and received 17,000 responses. The findings, published last month, claim to show a significant correlation between time spent on mobile phones and the prevalence of warming around the ear, headaches, tiredness and tingling, tightness or burning sensations around the face.

In May, a 27-year-old company director with a brain tumour became the first person in the UK to sue her mobile phone manufacturer. And some employers, afraid of possible liability issues, are beginning to buy radiation shields for their mobile staff.

There's no disputing mobile phone handsets emit microwave radiation, since this is how they work, but scientific opinion is divided on whether this is harmful. The conflict centres on two issues - the effect of microwave radiation on the human body and the likely impact of the relatively low levels of radiation emitted by a mobile phone.

The one undisputed effect is that microwaves warm things up, as any devotee of baked potatoes and frozen junk-food knows. Sticking your head in a microwave oven will clearly do you no good at all.

But the power output of a mobile phone is so small - one watt or less, say the manufacturers - that many scientists believe it's unlikely to cause ill effects.

The only confirmed risks are the heating effects on brain tissue, according to Alan Preece, a consultant clinical scientist at Bristol Royal Infirmary.

'But the risk from phones is very small because the temperature rise is only a fraction of a degree.'

Doctors use microwaves to treat tumours, but he points out it takes 25 watts of power to cause the six degree Celsius rise required to kill a tumour. The brain can easily handle a one degree rise - in patients with a severe fever, brain temperature may rise by three degrees.

The effects on the body of ionising radiation - the sort emitted by X-ray machines and nuclear explosions - have been extensively studied. It's accepted that they can cause cancers and other mutations by physically breaking the hydrogen bonds which hold together the organism's DNA strings.

But the effects of non-ionising radiation, such as the microwave signals emitted by mobile phones, haven't been monitored so closely. Isolated studies, such as one by scientist Henry Lai of Washington State University, have suggested that microwaves might cause DNA breakages.

Researchers at the University of Colorado also found mobile phone users were deficient in melatonin, a chemical thought to help prevent the development of cancers.

A study at the Royal Adelaide Hospital in Australia by Dr Michael Repacholi discovered that microwaves of the type emitted by mobile phones accelerated the development of lymphoma cancers in mice. But these were mice that had been bred to develop lymphomas anyway, so whether the microwaves were the cause, or merely accelerated the process, is not clear.

The incidence of lymphoma cancers has increased significantly over the past decade or so, and Coghill says its geographic spread has followed the launch of mobile phone services. However, opponents of his views point out that the apparent rise in lymphomas may be due to other factors, such as better diagnosis or people living longer.

So far, we have only a large body of anecdotal evidence, mostly volunteered by people who blame their illnesses on their mobile phones. What we don't have is either widespread epidemiological studies, comparing a large number of users with a control group of non-users, or any evidence of the mechanism by which microwaves might cause damage.

But this isn't to say users are imagining their symptoms. Preece has conducted tests on people who complain of cognitive problems and found they genuinely have problems. 'The scientological effect (headaches, memory loss) seems to be strong,' he says.

But Preece speculates that the cause may not be the mobile phone itself, but the stressful lifestyle that goes with it. 'I usually use a mobile phone when I'm trying to do six things at once,' he points out.

The manufacturers are sticking to their guns and insisting that their products are safe. 'We don't find any connection between using a mobile phone and brain tumours or headaches,' says an NEC representative. 'We don't find the amount of radiation coming out of a mobile phone would do the user any harm.'

But Coghill disagrees: 'UK law says if there's a hazard, it's incumbent on the distributor to warn the public.' Everyone agrees research must continue. 'There is a need for further studies, because base stations and handsets are causing public concern,' says a representative for the National Radiological Protection Board, the government watchdog on radiation issues.

Even if there are genuine dangers to health, no one is saying all mobile phone users are at risk, any more than all PC users are at risk of developing RSI. Much may depend on how long people use their phones, what type of phone they use and any predisposition they may have.

As with many potential hazards, the key to reducing the risk is to minimise the time for which the device is used. Even Coghill uses a mobile phone, but only for short calls. 'The sensible thing to do is to limit your calls to less than three minutes,' he says. 'After about only 20 minutes, you can get irreversible changes in cells that can lead to lymphomas.'

Coghill estimates that 10 per cent of mobile phone users - about 800,000 people in the UK - may be at risk through making calls longer than 20 minutes. However, cell damage may be only temporary, at least in its early stages. 'There's good evidence that after about 40 days the cells seem to return to normal,' he adds.

The scientists also believe that shielding devices (see box) could reduce risks. Wilson says his Microshield has been tested by BABT, the telecoms approvals board, and was shown to cut out more than 90 per cent of microwave radiation.

The drawback of waiting to understand the mechanisms by which microwaves cause medical problems is that it may be too late. The tobacco industry argues that no scientist has conclusively demonstrated the mechanism by which smoking causes cancer, despite the huge body of epidemiological evidence that says far more smokers get lung cancer than non-smokers.

The scientific research must be painstaking and the full picture could take years to emerge. If it turns out to be a false alarm, the whistle-blowers will be left red-faced. But if the hazards are proved, those who make or sell mobile phones may face a barrage of lawsuits and long-time users may wish they had stuck to email instead.

As with any health issue, anyone with concerns or suspected symptoms should seek medical advice.

THE RISKS TO OTHER PEOPLE

The possible risks of cancer and other diseases must not detract attention from some of the established risks of mobile phones.

It's known, for example, that radiation emissions from mobile phones can interfere with electrical equipment, from PCs to pacemakers.

Some of the greatest risks occur in hospitals, where sensitive equipment such as infusion pumps or physiological monitors may be accidentally reprogrammed.

The current recommendation is that mobile phones shouldn't be used within 1.5m of such equipment.

It may also not be safe to use a mobile phone within 25cm of a heart pacemaker. The risk varies according to the model of pacemaker, so if you're a mobile phone user with a pacemaker, check with your cardiologist.

Hearing aids are also susceptible to interference, both from the wearer's own mobile phone and from other people's phones.

Manufacturers are attempting to rectify this problem, by either producing lower-radiation handsets or by selling add-on induction loops.

Reports of mobile phones interfering with in-car systems such as automatic braking, airbags and cruise controls have not been substantiated, according to car manufacturers. But audio and remote locking systems may be affected if the phone is held close to them.

Perhaps most serious of all are the risks to other road users when people talk and drive at the same time. At least two fatal accidents were caused last year by car drivers in mid-conversation, one when an 11-year-old girl on a bicycle was hit.

Work by the Transport Research Laboratory has shown that using a phone while driving is as bad for a driver's concentration as drinking up to the legal alcohol limit. Dialling a number is as difficult as reading a map while driving.

Finally, under no circumstances should a mobile phone be used on an aircraft while in flight. The majority of airlines ban the use of mobile phones as a matter of course.

PROTECTION PRODUCTS

There are two ways to reduce the potential impact of a mobile phone's microwave radiation. You can either reduce the amount of radiation the phone emits, or ensure that it's not directed at the user's body.

German manufacturer Hagenuk has developed a handset that directs the radiation away from the user's head, although it has had difficulty persuading resellers to stock it.

Many manufacturers have filed patents for lower-radiation handsets, some citing potential health risks, while not admitting to their current models being unsafe.

Others claim lower-radiation designs are intended to reduce power consumption or prevent interference with hearing aids.

Phones can also be fitted with covers, such as Microshield, Protector or Rad 75. Some radiation must be allowed out for the phone to work, but shield manufacturers claim that, except in weak signal areas, most of it can be shielded without affecting performance.

Microshield, developed by mobile phone user Les Wilson, is a black leather case with metallic cloth sewn into it. A see-through mesh cloth covers the keypad and there is a cover for the phone's antenna, which usually emits most of the radiation.

In a weak signal area, the cover can be slid down to reveal more of the antenna, allowing more of the signal to escape.

Microshield retails for #39.95, including VAT. Wilson says some resellers and general retailers have considered selling the device, but he sells mainly by mail order.

There's a question over whether analogue or digital mobile phones pose the higher risk. GSM phones use more power than analogue models, but in shorter bursts. Opinion remains divided.

Fixed phones don't use microwave radiation and aren't thought to pose any risk. DECT digital cordless phones use microwaves, but the signal strength is much lower than that of a mobile phone, so is not seen as a risk.