Week of September 27, 2000

With 100 million Americans using cell phones, there's a great deal of interest in how their use affects the human body - and very little accurate information. In this hour, we hear from the top federal regulator as well as a journalist reporting on cell phone health effects. We also look at the impact on cell phones on the human psyche, and the etiquette of mobile phone use. Guests include: Dr. David Feigal of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration; Dr. Louis Slesin, editor of Microwave News; Dr. Lilli Friedland, an expert in the psychology of new technologies; reigning Mrs. Palm Beach County Jacqueline Whitmore, who runs the Protocol School of Palm Beach; and Dr. Charles Jennings, editor of the scientific journal Nature Neuroscience. Commentary by John Hockenberry.

We begin the hour with commentary by host Dr. Fred Goodwin, who observes that, as a psychiatrist, he thinks of the moon when considering the effect of electromagnetic radiation on the brain. Serious scientific evidence has demonstrated that lunar cycles cause a measurable shift in the electricity of the brain, he says, leading him to wonder why cell phones wouldn't, too. The field of cell phone research has produced few answers to date, he says.

Next, some New York teen-agers talk about cell phones as a fashion statement . and a parental leash.

Joining the program next is Dr. David Feigal, a physician and clinical epidemiologist and director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Center for Devices and Radiological Health. The FDA is responsible for overseeing cell phone safety through a complicated joint arrangement with several other federal agencies, including the Federal Communications Commission. The FDA's formal position is that science has not demonstrated adverse health effects from cell phone use, but that it is not possible at present to conclude that mobile phones are either safe, or unsafe.

Feigal says that the FDA is responsible for setting the levels of radiation that cell phones can emit into the skull and brain. The FDA's strategy, he says, is to monitor the research in to cell phone safety. While officials have concluded that studies do not currently demonstrate a health risk, they do try to let concerned consumers know what they can do to reduce any potential of a problem.

Feigal says the research he's reviewed regarding the biological impact of cell phones shows only subtle effects, and that they are hard to replicate. It's difficult to know whether there is just a small effect or none at all, he says.

The discussion is joined by Lynne, a caller from Georgia, who wants to know about levels of radiation from cellular transmission towers. There's a tower right over her child's preschool, she says, and near a kindergarten playground. Feigal says that the radiation levels from such towers are low and quickly dissipated. The caller also asks what we know about the impact of this type of radiation on children. Dr. Goodwin observes that teen-agers spend a huge amount of time on the phone, and that their brains and nervous systems are still developing. Plus, those who begin using cell phones as a child can expect a lifetime of exposure, Goodwin says. Feigal says the radiation exposure from a cellular tower would be far lower than allowing the child to use the family cell phone. He goes on to acknowledge that there has been very little research conducted to date on the risk to kids of the actual phones themselves, which emit heat as well as electromagnetic radiation.

Goodwin next asks his guest what studies he'd like to see replicated. Feigal says he's interested in seeing more research that explores the long-term impact on memory, since there's some anecdotal evidence of some individual problems. There's no way of knowing right now whether some people are just particularly sensitive, perhaps because of a medical condition, or whether the effects are more generic.

Feigal says that some of the responsibility lies with the consumer. He asks: Do we keep products off the market until all the answers are in? People think if FDA has approved something, it means that it's safe, he says, when many things, especially drugs, do carry some degree of risk.

Feigal says that a new consumer demand that exposure levels are kept low will put pressure on cell phone manufacturers to revamp their designs. In response to a question, Feigal says that he personally, would prefer a phone that allowed the antenna to extend away from his body. Asked how consumers can compare between various models, he acknowledges that the FDA should probably be doing a better job providing consumer information, and also mentions an article in WIRED magazine that did compare various brands and models.

People worried about the risk of exposure should keep the duration of their calls down, and consider using a hands-free earpiece/microphone headset, he suggests. The Federal Communications Commission maintains a website with highly technical information on the radiation output of various models of cell phones. And click here for the FDA's recent "Consumer Update on Mobile Phones." Or, you can call the FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health at 1-888-463-6332 or 301-827-3990, or write to the Center at CDRH/FDA, 1350 Piccard Drive, HFZ-210, Rockville, MD, 20850

A completely different perspective is offered next by Dr. Louis Slesin, editor of Microwave News, a bimonthly newsletter that covers news about electromagnetic radiation. Slesin says there is little research going on in the U.S. about cell phone safety, and that studies abroad suggesting health risks are, for the most part, ignored here. He discusses a number of studies that he says point to problems, including:

• An experiment in Australia a few years ago, funded by the Australian telecommunications industry, which exposed mice to simulated cell phone radiation for 18 months, with two 30-minunte sessions a day. The study found that the exposed mice had more than a doubling of the cancer. The cell phone industry here has performed no animal studies to date although the FDA has requested them in writing.
  
  
• Cognitive studies in three different labs, in The UK, Finland and Germany, which suggest that cell phone radiation may speed up brain function, allowing test subjects to perform certain tasks faster. Although may sound positive, Slesin says, the question is: If cell phone radiation is having that biological effect, what other effects is it having?
  
  
• A Swedish study, which showed some correlation between side of the head in which brain tumors developed and side on which the patient held a cell phone. While the results of that study were not statistically significant, Slesin says, it does seem to warrant further investigation.
  
  
• Various studies in Europe indicating sleep disturbances.

The issue of biological effects from cell phones became an issue about seven years ago, Slesin says, when a man filed a lawsuit charging that his wife had died of a brain tumor related to cell phone use. Shortly thereafter, the industry committed to spending $25 million in research on cell phone health effects. Slesin says his publication, Microwave News, has not been able to learn how that money was spent.

Slesin suggests that it's important for researchers to learn soon how the radiation is mechanistically interacting with the human body. At present, we don't know, and no one in the U.S. is doing these important studies, he says. In 1990, one of the very first studies, government -supported, found that tumor cells grew much more rapidly when exposed to cell phone radiation, Slesin says, adding that he's amazed that no one has ever attempted to replicate those results.

His advice for consumers: Don't give cell phones to kids until we know more about the effects, and use hands-free sets whenever possible. Keep the antenna as far as possible from the body . Don't clip it to your belt or put it in your pocket; set the phone itself on a desk or table, or hold it away from the body. The radiation exposure quickly dissipates as the antenna is moved away from the body, he says.

You can contact Microwave News online at http://www.microwavenews.com, or write to them at PO Box 1799, Grand Central Station, New York, NY 10163-1799.

Turning from the effects on the body to the effects on the psyche, Dr. Goodwin is joined by Dr. Lilli Friedland, a clinical psychologist and specialist in media psychology, who has headed a New Technologies Committee for the American Psychological Association; and Jacqueline Whitmore, who owns and operates the Protocol School of Palm Beach, Fla. which consults to industry and individuals on the fine points of civility and etiquette. Mrs. Whitmore is also the reigning Mrs. Palm Beach County.

Friedland says that she is concerned that people are starting to substitute cell phones conversations for real intimacy. It's hard to resolve differences, or learn to be social, using cell phone communications or email, she suggests. In addition, people use cell phones at inappropriate times and in inappropriate locations, she says, observing that while we judge ourselves by our intentions, we judge others by their behavior. While we might think that we're just chatting on the phone for a moment, the person we're with may well view it as a rude interruption, the psychologist says.

Whitmore agrees and says she encounters a growing need for education in cell phone etiquette. Some of her commonsense rules: Don't use them in hospitals, films, weddings, funerals or public restrooms. In a restaurant, if you're expecting an important call, let your dinner partners know in advance. Step away from the table to take the call, and be brief.

You can contact The Protocol School of Palm Beach online, write to them at Post Office Box 3073, Palm Beach, Florida 33480, or call 888-968-3460.

Next, commentator John Hockenberry speculates that cell phones may actually reflect a trend in human evolution, observing that people are still talking into the air on the streets of New York - and that we still have no idea to whom.

Finally, changing directions, we hear from Dr. Charles Jennings, editor of the scientific journal Nature Neuroscience. He talks about new developments in the use of PET scans to chart emotions and about new research into Alzheimer's disease.
 

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