Thursday, July 10, 2014

WATCH: The Top 5 Phones with the Highest Radiation


WATCH: The Top 5 Phones with the Highest Radiation

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LG unveils child-tracking Kizon device

LG unveils child-tracking Kizon device

By Leo KelionTechnology desk editor
LG KizonLG plans to introduce Kizon to South Korea, North America and Europe
LG has announced a wrist-worn device designed to let parents keep track of where their child is and listen to what they are up to.
The Kizon uses GPS and wi-fi signals to identify the wearer's location and sends the information to an Android app.
LG is targeting the device at families with pre-school and primary school children.
However, others have raised concerns about the idea.
"A parent should never solely rely on a device alone. This will only give a false sense of security," said Peter Bradley, director of services at the charity Kidscape.
"Children still need to be taught about dangers - particularly 'stranger danger'."
"There are ethical points to consider too - should a child be able to be traced as part of going about their daily lives? How can a child develop their own coping strategies knowing a parent is watching over them?"
LG KizonThe Kizon is water- and stain-resistant and only features one button on its front
Privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch has also called for more details to be made available.
"Parents must be aware that any technology with location tracking and mobile phone services come with added security concerns, which are only heightened when the user is a child," said acting director Emma Carr.
"The companies developing the products must be explicitly clear what they are doing to enhance the security around the data collected to ensure that it is only the parents who will ever have access to the child's location and contact details."
A spokeswoman from LG was unable to discuss the issues raised.
The South Korean firm is not the first to market such a device - start-ups including KMS Solutions, Tinitell and Filip have announced similar products - however, LG's launch marks the entry of a major tech company into the sector.
Even so, one industry watcher suggested the design of the Kizon could limit its appeal.
"If the wristband looks like a bulky Star Trek machine, it will be a deterrent against adoption - that's true of all wearable devices - the aesthetics are very important," said Saverio Romeo from the Beecham Research consultancy.
"In this specific case you would want something that's not too obtrusive."
Connected children
LG says the Kizon can run for up to 36 hours between charges, is water resistant and works with 2G and 3G cellular networks.
FilipFilip Technologies offers a rival smart locating watch
The wearer can call a pre-configured phone number by pressing a button on its front.
The button also allows the child to accept calls from approved numbers, and if they fail to press it within 10 seconds the device will automatically let the caller listen in to the machine's built-in microphone.
"New technology has a way of throwing up parenting conundrums that get right to the heart of the line between being responsible for your children and invading their privacy," the Mumsnet blogging network's founder, Justine Roberts, told the BBC.
"Some parents may want to know the precise location of their children, but most will probably remain happy to yell across the playground or send a text.
"The key thing is to establish good lines of communication with your children, and let them feel that they can talk to you about any tricky situations they find themselves in."
LG said it planned to launch the device in South Korea this week, and introduce it to Europe and North America before the end of September.

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Technology Aids Wi-Fi Installs in Stadiums

Technology Aids Wi-Fi Installs in Stadiums

BY J. SHARPE SMITH –

July 10, 2014 — With 30,000 or 40,000, maybe 100,000 people all trying to use their devices in one place at the same time during a game, stadiums are scrambling to deploy technologies for offloading this traffic. Wi-Fi systems are getting more sophisticated at filling the coverage and capacity gaps.
Eight Major League Baseball stadiums added Wi-Fi in the last year bringing the total to 20 of the 30 venues, according to the Mobile Sports Report.
On the opening day of the 2014 season, AT&T Park, home of the San Francisco Giants, became the first professional sports venue to provide continuous universal wireless access to fans in all concourses and seating areas. Working in conjunction with AT&T, the Giants installed more than 1,200 Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n) access points. Fans get free access to the Internet along with Major League Baseball’s official app.
The National Football League is in the same boat. It has Wi-Fi in two-thirds of its 31 stadiums. The league hired Extreme Networks to provide Wi-Fi analytics for Super Bowl XLVIII and future league games to help them analyze and solve the connectivity problems, as well as allowing the stadiums to use big data to improve the fans’ experience.
One of the key challenges to deploying Wi-Fi in stadiums is finding somewhere to mount the antennas close enough to the fans.
“In stadiums where you don’t have a back wall or ceiling to deploy the Wi-Fi antenna, you need another solution to get the Wi-Fi signal to the digital devices,” said Jeff Lime, vice president of Ventev Wireless Infrastructure.
TerraWave Under-the-Seat Wi-Fi Solution with Access Point and 6 TerraWave Bantam Antennas (3)
Ventev’s TerraWave Under-the-Seat Wi-Fi Solution
Ventev sought to meet this need by developing a smaller antenna and an access point in a package that can be mounted below the stadium seats.
Ventev’s TerraWave Under-the-Seat Wi-Fi Solution comprises six 2-inch-tall Bantam omnidirectional antennas that are connected to an access point and housed inside a compact, watertight and tamper-proof enclosure, which can be installed onto a concrete or metal surface.
“The challenge we had to solve was mounting the access point under the seat with an antenna that gives the proper RF coverage in a small space and allows the stadium owners to power wash the stadium, clear the trash under the seats and keep it far enough away from the users that it passes all RF regulations,” Lime said.


The Wi-Fi solution has been deployed in several large public venues including a Major League Baseball stadium and a high-profile U.S. airport. It is compatible with Cisco 2600/2700/3500/3600/3700 APs.
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Wednesday, July 09, 2014

FATZ and DECCY – the UK’s cartoon approach to Smart Meters

FATZ and DECCY – the UK’s cartoon approach to Smart Meters

July 9th, 2014 |  Published in Smart Energy  
The UK Government has enlisted two cartoon characters – FATZ and DECCY to explain the need for smart meters to a sceptical public. FATZ – the corpulent blue one, represents the cold, uncaring fat cat executives of the energy industry, eager to take still more of your money, while the manic yellow DECCY represents the seriously scary civil servants of the Department of Energy and Climate Change who have been tasked with dreaming up the world’s most complicated and unworkable smart metering specification. Their bulging eyes and demented smiles tell the average consumer all they need to know about the UK smart metering plan and the mentality of the people behind it.
Claire Maugham, director of communications at Smart Energy GB, who’s responsible for the campaign said: “FATZ and DECCY are embodiments of what we’ve heard about consumers’ experiences about buying gas and electricity. We heard time and time again that people are anxious because they don’t know what they’re spending, they don’t know if they are on the right tariff or with the right supplier. It’s almost like they are out of control, causing chaos around the house like two naughtily children.”  So it’s fitting that they’ve chosen utility bosses and DECC employees as models for their chaos and out of control metering specification.
The aim of the campaign is two-fold. Firstly to try and persuade consumers to allow a smart meter to be fitted, secondly to try to convince them they that might save money, not least because if they don’t it exposes the alleged consumer savings trumpeted by DECC as pure fiction, relegating the whole project into another expensive Government IT fiasco. Achieving either of Smart Energy GB’s aims looks increasingly difficult.
Gaz and Leccy reveal their true identities for UK energy consumers
Last Sunday the Mail on Sunday ran a two page article on the UK smart metering plan, in the run-up to the Smart Energy GB launch. It wasn’t anti-smart metering, but pointed out the technical issues with the GB approach which are making it the most expensive system in the world, with a high potential of failure. A surprising number of readers have already commented on it, most to confirm that they would not allow a smart meter to be fitted, largely because of a growing distrust of both Government and energy suppliers. So aim number one looks increasingly difficult.
Smart Energy UK’s second aim, of proving that smart meters will save money for consumers is far more difficult to achieve. According to the Mail on Sunday, Smart Energy GB have said that a smart meter will cut the average electricity bill by 2.0% and the gas bill by 2.8%. DECC have just updated their estimates for average annual domestic energy bills, which are £768 for Gas and £566 for electricity. So the savings per household would be £21.50 and £11.32 per year.
That assumes that smart meters provide these savings. A recent report from smart meter installations in Holland reported that their expected savings of 6.4% on electricity and 5.1% on gas turned out to be fiction – the actual savings were 0.6% and 0.9%. The report also stated that given the results, it was not possible to conclude that there were any significant savings in electricity usage as a result of having a smart meter. If we go back to DECC’s research, UK domestic energy usage peaked in 2005 and has been falling by around 1.3% each year. Over the same period gas consumption has fallen by an average of 1.6% each year. That’s largely due to more efficient products in the home. It has nothing to do with smart meters. If we assume DECC’s projections are as over-egged as the Dutch ones, then the real savings will be no more than a few pounds per years for the average household, which makes the smart metering deployment uneconomic.
But if we really do want to save consumers money on their energy bills, it may be possible. It’s just that smart meters are not the best way to do it. However, DECC is less than happy to talk about this, because it’s based its whole business case for smart meters on these fictional savings. A lot of civil servants are getting their mortgages paid for wearing smart metering blinkers. Other countries like Germany have been more honest. They haven’t included made-up figures in their analyses of smart metering benefits. As a result they’ve concluded that it is not economically viable to deploy smart meters and they’ve dropped their programs. Incidentally, if anyone tells you there’s an EU mandate to roll out smart meters, they haven’t read the legislation,  The EU recommends them, but only if they are economically viable. The GB mandate is entirely the brain-child of successive Government ministers who are using it to flaunt their green credentials at the cost of their constituents.
To see how technology can save energy in the home, I’ve had a look at some numbers from British Gas, as I have more faith in their numbers than most of the others involved in smart metering, not least because they’ve installed enough to have some actual experience, although I suspect these are marketing numbers, not ground-truth data. They’ve been promoting two ways of saving money – smart meters and smart thermostats. (Incidentally, it would be nice if British Gas published some of their data on both of these – they’ve probably got more evidence of smart meter effectiveness than anyone else in the world, which could prove whether smart metering works.)
First smart meters. British Gas’ website quotes estimates from the Energy Saving Trust which claim that if smart meters are supplied with an In Home Display they will save the average household £105 a year. According to DECC’s estimates it will cost British Gas around £256 to supply and install these meters in each home, which will inevitably get added to bills.
After their initial flush of enthusiasm for installing smart meters, British Gas turned their attention to a different energy saving device – the smart thermostat. These learn your preferred comfort levels, when you’re at home and when you’re not and adjust your heating accordingly. Nest is the poster child of smart thermostats, but British Gas were so impressed by their potential that they set up a separate company to produce their own Hive Smart thermostat. They claim this will save the average home up to £150 per year. British Gas charge £199 to have it installed, with quite a few discounts available on top of that. Assuming there’s an element of profit in that charge, it probably only costs them around £125 to make and install it, so it’s a profitable business and a lot cheaper than a smart meter.
Let’s have a closer look at those figures. Using British Gas’ own numbers, the smart meter will cost the consumer £256 (as it will end up on their bill) and save them £105 a year. The smart thermostat will cost the consumer £199 and save £150 each year. As a consumer that wants to save energy, which would you have?
If we believe Smart Energy UK, the £105 saving from a smart meter is exaggerated – they reckon it’s only around £33 a year and most of that depends on the effect of the In Home Display. (Smart Energy UK’s website doesn’t appear to know how In Home Display’s work – they claim they only update electricity data every six minutes rather than every ten seconds. If that’s the case, they’ll have virtually no effect on savings. Note to Smart Energy GB – read the technical specifications.)  Nobody within the industry believes that users will keep the in-home display for more than a year – most expect it will only be for a few weeks, so the £105 saving every year diminishes to a one-off saving in the first year, which we’ll optimistically assume is the full £33.
Assuming both smart meter and smart thermostat have the same 10 year life, the deal looks like this:
Smart Meter
Costs £256. Total saving over ten years £33. Consumer Loss – £223
Smart Thermostat
Costs £199. Total saving over ten years – £1,050. Consumer Gain – £851.
The savings from a smart thermostat are probably also over-inflated, but even if they’re a third of British Gas’ figures, it leaves the user almost £400 better off than the smart meter option.
So if Smart Energy UK and DECC are telling the truth when they say that they want to save consumers money, they’ll stop promoting smart meters and start installing smart thermostats. Except they’re not telling the whole truth.
The reason FATZ and DECCY aren’t going to tell you this is because smart thermostats only tackle gas consumption. Whilst that provides massively better savings for consumers, utilities have an ulterior motive which is not about customer savings, but managing peak electricity demand. Hence they pick and choose “energy” savings to suit their vested interest.
Peak electricity demand is an interesting subject in its own right. Because you can’t store electricity you need flexible generation, but that’s expensive as it means you have to build power stations which are idle for most of their life. And the more renewable generation you build, the more back-up power stations you need to cope with the times when the wind isn’t blowing. What utilities would love is for consumers to reduce their usage to match supply, so that they don’t need to do any work other than take your money.
To achieve this they’d like to emulate the demand response programs in the US, where utilities can either turn off users’ appliances directly, or hike the price of electricity at peak times to discourage use. Neither has been very successful, but they’ve received a lot of high-level hype and lobbying from companies supporting them. But they have little relevance to the UK.
The graph below shows why. In states like Texas, where demand response is popular with utilities, a significant number of households have pool pumps and air conditioners which consume massive amounts of electricity. The red line shows typical power use for a home during a summer day. The blue is the markedly lower consumption for a winter day. Texan utilities would love to make the summer use look more like the winter. It still gives them an enormous challenge in demand change during each 24 hours, but it would be a great improvement.
In contrast the green line shows the average UK domestic demand on the same scale. It doesn’t change much from winter to summer, unless you have storage heaters. Compared with the US, the calming effect of the Gulf Stream gives us one of the smallest peak problems of any country. That doesn’t mean peak demand isn’t still a problem, but it is such a different problem that you can’t apply the same solutions that are being tried in the US.

It’s questionable whether anyone knows exactly what is responsible for UK domestic peaks – the old story of kettles being boiled after Coronation Street still dominates reports, although the Sky+ button has probably dome more to smooth these out than anything that utilities will offer. As is so often the case, there is precious little real evidence or data behind what is being proposed – our energy industry and mandarins prefers folklore to fact. But that hasn’t stopped them buying into the US hype and overdesigning our meters to try and support ever more complex demand response models and time of use tariffs than any that have been rolled out in the US. Incidentally, OFGEM has refused to allow most of the tariff proposals that the utilities have suggested for the UK, which means that most of the expensive features that have built into our smart meters can’t be used and are a further waste of money.
Going back to energy savings, smart thermostat vendors like Nest and Hive have probably already done more for consumer engagement and energy savings than the entire UK smart metering deployment will manage. As a further irony, I just noticed that nPower will give me a Nest smart Thermostat and install it for £99 as long as I sign up to their Intelligent Fix tariff Terms and Conditions where I agree to provide them with my own online meter readings.So it seems they’re offering me energy savings for not having a smart meter!
It’s just another case of the energy industry getting consumer engagement spectacularly wrong in. A further cock-up is that most of the advertising material for the smart metering launch has been misprinted, so that FATZ and DECCY are incorrectly labelled GAZ and LECCY, as if it isn’t obvious to everybody what the cartoon characters really represent. But then the industry’s never been brilliant at advertising and customer engagement. I leave you with a promotional poster from the Willesden Electricity Company from the middle of last century to illustrate how little progress has been made.
The best ever electricity advert from EDF






The Willesden Electricity Dept is now part of EDF.
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Is mobile phone use contributing to increased incidence of thyroid cancer?

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Is mobile phone use contributing to increased incidence of thyroid cancer?


The incidence of thyroid cancer has been increasing rapidly in recent years in many countries including the U.S., Canada, and Israel.

A headline in Haaretz a year ago March reads, "Israeli scientists find possible link between cellphone use, thyroid cancer." 

In response to questions posed to me on this topic today from several individuals, I did a PubMed search. Although I did not find any epidemiologic studies that examined the association between mobile phone use and thyroid cancer in humans, I found almost a dozen published papers that have studied the effects of cell phone radiation on thyroid function. Apparently, case-control research on this topic is warranted.

The abstracts from 11 published papers that examined the effects of exposure to cell phone radiation on thyroid function appear below. Please let me know if you are aware of important studies that I missed, and I will supplement this list.  I did not include studies that examined exposure to power frequency radiation.

But first, here is the 2013 news article  ...


Israeli scientists find possible link between cellphone use, thyroid cancer

Dan Even, Haaretz, Mar 6, 2013

Israeli scientists have reported preliminary findings of a possible link between the radiation from cellphones and thyroid cancer. There has been a steep rise in rates of thyroid cancer in recent years in Western countries.

The Israeli research, conducted at Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva and at Tel Aviv University, identified evidence for the first time of the possible connection between the rise in thyroid cancer cases to the increased exposure to radiation emitted by cellphones.

In one experiment, human thyroid cells collected from healthy patients were subjected to radiation with a device, designed for the study, that simulates the electromagnetic radiation emitted by cellphones. The irradiated thyroid cells proliferated at a much higher, statistically significant rate than non-irradiated cells in the control group. A second experiment, using different methods and materials, gave similar results.

The research was conducted in the Felsenstein Medical Research Center, part of the Sackler Faculty of Medicine at Tel Aviv University and the Rabin Medical Center. Prof. Raphael Feinmesser, head of Beilinson’s Ear, Nose and Throat Department was the lead researcher. The findings will be presented for the first time this weekend at the annual conference of the Israeli Society of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, in Eilat.

“The findings are the first evidence of changes in thyroid cells in response to electromagnetic radiation,” said Feinmesser. “But drawing sweeping conclusions as to a connection between cellphone radiation and thyroid cancer is still far off.”

The scientific community is divided as to the connection between cellular radiation and cancer. One opinion is that because cellular radiation is non-ionizing and incapable of causing changes in cellular DNA, it cannot cause cancer. But in recent years evidence has mounted from epidemiological studies indicating a relationship between increased exposure to cellular radiation and cancerous growths, especially in the brain and the salivary glands.

“The thyroid gland is located in the neck, but the area is located the same distance from the ear as the regions of the brain where [cancerous] growths have been diagnosed as being related to the use of the [cellular] devices. This is a region that is not far from the center of the device’s radiation,” said Feinmesser.

The incidence of thyroid cancer has been on the rise in Israel for more than a decade, which matches the rise in the use of cellphones. Thyroid cancer is three times more common in women than men. It is the fourth most common form of cancer among Jewish women in Israel, at 16.6 cases per 100,000 people. The three most common forms of cancer for women are cancer of the breast, colon and cervix. Among Israeli Arab women the rate of thyroid cancer is 11.6 cases per 100,000, and it is the third most common cancer. From 1990 to 2007 there was a 67-percent rise in thyroid cancer rates among Jewish women, and a 250 percent increase among Arab women, Health Ministry figures show. For men, the rise from 2000 is more moderate, but still shows a 41 percent increase in thyroid cancer rates for Jewish men.

“One of the explanations is that the rise is related to better technical methods of early detection of these growths, which have been developed in recent years. But other research shows that even after neutralizing this influence a rise in these growths still remains,” said Feinmesser.

Just this week it was reported that mobile operator Partner Communications (Orange ) reached a settlement with a customer who claims he contracted cancer after using the company’s cellphones. The customer, who is in his 50s, sued Partner in May, claiming that intensive use of the device resulted in an aggressive lymphoma near his left ear. Partner agreed to pay NIS 400,000 in an out-of-court settlement.”

http://bit.ly/14rrWfA

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Hilly, Ohad; Silva, Verónica; Mizrachi, Aviram; Ariel, Ortal; Raiter, Annat; Hauptman, Yirmi; Hardy, Britta; Feinmesser, Raphael. 

EFFECT OF NON-IONIZING ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION AT MOBILE PHONE FREQUENCY ON HUMAN THYROID CELLS. 


Abstract from the World Thyroid Cancer Congress in Toronto 2013.

Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Rabin Medical Center, Petah Tikva, Israel; 2Felsenstein Medical Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; 3Gal Safe Ltd., Or Yehuda, Israel

Background/Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine the effect of non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation (NIER) at mobile phone frequency on human thyroid cells.

Methods: We cultured samples of normal thyroid tissue and subsequently exposed the cultured thyrocytes to NIER for 3 hours. NIER effects were evaluated in terms of proliferation using a cell viability assay and immunohistochemistry.

Results: We found that NIER exposure for 3 hours has lead to an increased proliferation of thyrocytes in cell viability assay (p=0.007). This result was confirmed by immunohistochemistry with antibodies against Ki67.

Discussion & Conclusion: In this study we present for the first time an in vitro evaluation of NIER  effects on human thyroid cells. Our results suggest a proliferative effect of NIER on human thyrocytes, an effect that may link NIER exposure with potential carcinogenesis.

http://thyroidworldcongress.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/O022_Mizrachi.pdf

PubMed Search Results  (in chronological order)

 K, Sechman A, Nieckarz Z. 

Plasma thyroid hormones and corticosterone levels in blood of chicken embryos and post hatch chickens exposed during incubation to 1800 MHz electromagnetic field. 


Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2014 Jan 31. [Epub ahead of print]

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: This study attempted to determine the effect of a 1800 MHz electromagnetic field (EMF) (only carrier frequency) on thyroxine (T4), triiodothyronine (T3) and corticosterone (CORT) concentrations in the blood plasma of chick embryos, and to investigate the effect of electromagnetic field (EMF) exposure during embryogenesis on the level of these hormones in birds that are ready for slaughter.

MATERIAL AND METHODS:  Throughout the incubation period, embryos from the experimental group were exposed to a 1800 MHz EMF with power density of 0.1 W/m2, 10 times during 24 h for 4 min. Blood samples were collected to determine T4, T3 and CORT concentrations on the 12th (E12) and 18th (E18) day of incubation, from newly hatched chicks (D1) and from birds ready for slaughter (D42).

RESULTS:  The experiment showed that T4 and T3 concentrations decreased markedly and CORT levels increased in the embryos and in the newly hatched chicks exposed to EMF during embryogenesis. However, no changes were found in the level of the analyzed hormones in the birds ready for slaughter. Differences in T4 and T3 plasma concentrations between the EMF-exposed group and the embryos incubated without additional EMF were the highest in the newly hatched chicks, which may be indicative of the cumulative effect of electromagnetic field on the hypothalamo-pituitary-thyroid axis (HPT).

DISCUSSION:  The obtained results suggest that additional 1800 MHz radio frequency electromagnetic field inhibits function of HPT axis, however, it stimulates hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis by inducing adrenal steroidogenic cells to synthesize corticosterone. Further investigations are needed to elucidate the mechanisms by which radio EMFs affect HPT and HPA axis function in the chicken embryos.

http://1.usa.gov/1e4do9w

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Jin YB, Choi HD, Kim BC, Pack JK, Kim N, Lee YS.

Effects of simultaneous combined exposure to CDMA and WCDMA electromagnetic fields on serum hormone levels in rats. 


J Radiat Res. 2013 May;54(3):430-7. doi: 10.1093/jrr/rrs120. Epub 2012 Dec 13.

Abstract

Despite more than a decade of research on the endocrine system, there have been no published studies about the effects of concurrent exposure of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) on this system. The present study investigated the several parameters of the endocrine system including melatonin, thyroid stimulating hormone, stress hormone and sex hormone after code division multiple access (CDMA, 849 MHz) and wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA, 1.95 GHz) signals for simultaneous exposure in rats. Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to RF-EMF signals for 45 min/day, 5 days/week for up to 8 weeks. The whole-body average specific absorption rate (SAR) of CDMA or WCDMA was 2.0 W/kg (total 4.0 W/kg). At 4 and 8 weeks after the experiment began, each experimental group's 40 rats (male 20, female 20) were autopsied. Exposure for 8 weeks to simultaneous CDMA and WCDMA RF did not affect serum levels in rats of melatonin, thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxin (T4), adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and sex hormones (testosterone and estrogen) as assessed by the ELISA method.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23239176

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Dimida A, Ferrarini E, Agretti P, De Marco G, Grasso L, Martinelli M, Longo I, Giulietti D, Ricci A, Galimberti M, Siervo B, Licitra G, Francia F, Pinchera A, Vitti P, Tonacchera M. 

Electric and magnetic fields do not modify the biochemical properties of FRTL-5 cells.


 J Endocrinol Invest. 2011 Mar;34(3):185-9. doi: 10.3275/7107. Epub 2010 Jun 11.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Electric and magnetic fields (EMF) might be involved in human disease and numerous research and scientific reviews have been conducted to address this question. In particular thyroid structural and functional alterations caused by various forms of non-ionizing radiation have been described.

AIM: The aim of this study was to analyze the possible effects of EMF on thyroid, in particular we analyzed the effects caused by a GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) signal (900 MHz) on cultured thyroid cells (FRTL- 5).

MATERIAL AND METHODS:  The experimental setup was designed in order to expose samples to a radiofrequency wave in well-controlled conditions. We used the FRTL-5 cell line, an epithelial monoclonal continuous cell line derived from Fisher rat thyroid tissue growing as monolayer, expressing the TSH receptor and the sodium-iodide symporter (NIS). FRTL-5 were subsequently irradiate for 24, 48, and 96 h with EMF (800-900 MHz, power-frequency of mobile communication systems) and iodide uptake and cAMP production were measured.

RESULTS:  The irradiation of cells with EMF at 900 Mhz for 24, 48, and 96 h did not influence the level of cAMP production and was not able to modify iodide accumulation in FRTL- 5 cells with respect to basal conditions.

CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, EMF do not seem to be able to interfere with the biochemical properties of FRTL-5 cells in vitro.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20543553

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Esmekaya MA, Seyhan N, Ömeroglu S. 

Pulse modulated 900 MHz radiation induces hypothyroidism and apoptosis in thyroid cells: a light, electron microscopy and immunohistochemical study. 


Int J Radiat Biol. 2010 Dec;86(12):1106-16. Epub 2010 Sep 1.

Abstract

PURPOSE: In the present study we investigated the possible histopathological effects of pulse modulated Radiofrequency (RF) fields on the thyroid gland using light microscopy, electron microscopy and immunohistochemical methods.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two months old male Wistar rats were exposed to a 900 MHz pulse-modulated RF radiation at a specific absorption rate (SAR) of 1.35 Watt/kg for 20 min/day for three weeks. The RF signals were pulse modulated by rectangular pulses with a repetition frequency of 217 Hz and a duty cycle of 1:8 (pulse width 0.576 ms). To assess thyroid endocrine disruption and estimate the degree of the pathology of the gland, we analysed structural alterations in follicular and colloidal diameters and areas, colloid content of the follicles, and height of the follicular epithelium. Apoptosis was confirmed by Transmission Electron Microscopy and assessing the activites of an initiator (caspase-9) and an effector (caspase-3) caspases that are important markers of cells undergoing apoptosis.

RESULTS: Morphological analyses revealed hypothyrophy of the gland in the 900 MHz RF exposure group. The results indicated that thyroid hormone secretion was inhibited by the RF radiation. In addition, we also observed formation of apoptotic bodies and increased caspase-3 and caspase-9 activities in thyroid cells of the rats that were exposed to modulated RF fields.

CONCLUSION: The overall findings indicated that whole body exposure to pulse-modulated RF radiation that is similar to that emitted by global system for mobile communications (GSM) mobile phones can cause pathological changes in the thyroid gland by altering the gland structure and enhancing caspase-dependent pathways of apoptosis.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20807179

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Milham S. 

Most cancer in firefighters is due to radio-frequency radiation exposure not inhaled carcinogens. 


Med Hypotheses. 2009 Nov;73(5):788-9. doi: 10.1016/j.mehy.2009.04.020. Epub 2009 May 22. 

Abstract

Recent reviews and reports of cancer incidence and mortality in firefighters conclude that they are at an increased risk of a number of cancers. These include leukemia, multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, male breast cancer, malignant melanoma, and cancers of the brain, stomach, colon, rectum, prostate, urinary bladder, testes, and thyroid. Firefighters are exposed to a long list of recognized or probable carcinogens in combustion products and the presumed route of exposure to these carcinogens is by inhalation. Curiously, respiratory system cancers and diseases are usually not increased in firefighters as they are in workers exposed to known inhaled carcinogens. The list of cancers with increased risk in firefighters strongly overlaps the list of cancers at increased risk in workers exposed to electromagnetic fields (EMF) and radiofrequency radiation (RFR). Firefighters have increased exposure to RFR in the course of their work, from the mobile two-way radio communications devices which they routinely use while fighting fires, and at times from firehouse and fire vehicle radio transmitters. I suggest that some of the increased cancer risk in firefighters is caused by RFR exposure, and is therefore preventable. The precautionary principle should be applied to reduce the risk of cancer in firefighters, and workman's compensation rules will necessarily need to be modified.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19464814

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Mortavazi S, Habib A, Ganj-Karami A, Samimi-Doost R, Pour-Abedi A, Babaie A. 

Alterations in TSH and Thyroid Hormones following Mobile Phone Use. 


Oman Med J. 2009 Oct;24(4):274-8. doi: 10.5001/omj.2009.56.

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: In recent years, the widespread use of mobile phones has lead to a public debate about possible detrimental effects on human health. In spite of years of research, there is still a great controversy regarding the possibility of induction of any significant physiological effects in humans by microwave radiations emitted by mobile phones. This study aims to investigate the effects of electromagnetic fields induced by the Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) mobile phones on the Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) and thyroid hormones in humans.

METHODS: 77 healthy university students participated in this study. The levels of T3, T4 and TSH were measured by using appropriate enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits (Human, Germany).

RESULTS: The average levels of T3, T4 and TSH in students who moderately used mobile phones were 1.25±0.27 ng/ml, 7.76±1.73 µg/dl and 4.25±2.12 µu/l respectively. The levels in the students who severely used mobile phones were 1.18±0.30, 7.75±1.14 and 3.75±2.05 respectively. In non-users, the levels were 1.15±0.27, 8.42±2.72 and 2.70±1.75, respectively. The difference among the levels of TSH in these 3 groups was statistically significant (P<0 .05="" o:p="">

CONCLUSION: As far as the study is concerned, this is the first human study to assess the associations between mobile phone use and alterations in the levels of TSH and thyroid hormones. Based on the findings, a higher than normal TSH level, low mean T4 and normal T3 concentrations in mobile users were observed. It seems that minor degrees of thyroid dysfunction with a compensatory rise in TSH may occur following excessive use of mobile phones. It may be concluded that possible deleterious effects of mobile microwaves on hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis affects the levels of these hormones.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22216380

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Djeridane Y, Touitou Y, de Seze R. 

Influence of electromagnetic fields emitted by GSM-900 cellular telephones on the circadian patterns of gonadal, adrenal and pituitary hormones in men. 


Radiat Res. 2008 Mar;169(3):337-43.

Abstract

The potential health risks of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF EMFs) emitted by mobile phones are currently of considerable public interest. The present study investigated the effect of exposure to 900 MHz GSM radiofrequency radiation on steroid (cortisol and testosterone) and pituitary (thyroid-stimulating hormone, growth hormone, prolactin and adrenocorticotropin) hormone levels in 20 healthy male volunteers. Each subject was exposed to RF EMFs through the use of a cellular phone for 2 h/day, 5 days/ week, for 4 weeks. Blood samples were collected hourly during the night and every 3 h during the day. Four sampling sessions were performed at 15-day intervals: before the beginning of the exposure period, at the middle and the end of the exposure period, and 15 days later. Parameters evaluated included the maximum serum concentration, the time of this maximum, and the area under the curve for hormone circadian patterns. Each individual's pre-exposure hormone concentration was used as his control. All hormone concentrations remained within normal physiological ranges. The circadian profiles of prolactin, thyroid-stimulating hormone, adrenocorticotropin and testosterone were not disrupted by RF EMFs emitted by mobile phones. For growth hormone and cortisol, there were significant decreases of about 28% and 12%, respectively, in the maximum levels when comparing the 2-week (for growth hormone and cortisol) and 4-week (for growth hormone) exposure periods to the pre-exposure period, but no difference persisted in the postexposure period. Our data show that the 900 MHz EMF exposure, at least under our experimental conditions, does not appear to affect endocrine functions in men.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18302481

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Koyu A, Cesur G, Ozguner F, Akdogan M, Mollaoglu H, Ozen S. 

Effects of 900 MHz electromagnetic field on TSH and thyroid hormones in rats. 


Toxicol Lett. 2005 Jul 4;157(3):257-62. Epub 2005 Apr 11.

Abstract

In this study, the effects of exposure to a 900 megahertz (MHz) electromagnetic field (EMF) on serum thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and triiodothronine-thyroxin (T3-T4) hormones levels of adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were studied. Thirty rats were used in three independent groups, 10 of which were control (without stress and EMF), 10 of which were exposed to 900 MHz EMF and 10 of which were sham-exposed. The exposures were performed 30 min/day, for 5 days/week for 4 weeks to 900 MHz EMF. Sham-exposed animals were kept under the same environmental conditions as the study groups except with no EMF exposure. The concentration of TSH and T3-T4 hormones in the rat serum was measured by using an immunoradiometric assay (IRMA) method for TSH and a radio-immunoassay (RIA) method for T3 and T4 hormones. TSH values and T3-T4 at the 900 MHz EMF group were significantly lower than the sham-exposed group (p<0 .01="" and="" between="" concentrations="" control="" differences="" group="" hormone="" in="" no="" p="" serum="" sham-exposed="" significant="" statistically="" t3-t4="" the="" there="" tsh="" values="" were="">0.05). These results indicate that 900 MHz EMF emitted by cellular telephones decrease serum TSH and T3-T4 levels.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15917150

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Wakeford R. 

The cancer epidemiology of radiation. 


Oncogene. 2004 Aug 23;23(38):6404-28.

Abstract

Ionizing radiation has been the subject of intense epidemiological investigation. Studies have demonstrated that exposure to moderate-to-high levels can cause most forms of cancer, leukaemia and cancers of the breast, lung and thyroid being particularly sensitive to induction by radiation, especially at young ages at exposure. Predominant among these studies is the Life Span Study of the cohort of survivors of the atomic bombings of Japan in 1945, but substantial evidence is derived from groups exposed for medical reasons, occupationally or environmentally. Notable among these other groups are underground hard rock miners who inhaled radioactive radon gas and its decay products, large numbers of patients irradiated therapeutically and workers who received high doses in the nuclear weapons programme of the former USSR. The degree of carcinogenic risk arising from low levels of exposure is more contentious, but the available evidence points to an increased risk that is approximately proportional to the dose received. Epidemiological investigations of nonionizing radiation have established ultraviolet radiation as a cause of skin cancer. However, the evidence for a carcinogenic effect of other forms of nonionizing radiation, such as those associated with mobile telephones or electricity transmission lines, is not convincing, although the possibility of a link between childhood leukaemia and extremely low-frequency electromagnetic fields cannot be dismissed entirely.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15322514

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Bergamaschi A, Magrini A, Ales G, Coppeta L, Somma G. 

Are thyroid dysfunctions related to stress or microwave exposure (900 MHz)? 


Int J Immunopathol Pharmacol. 2004 May-Aug;17(2 Suppl):31-6.

Abstract

In the last decade, numerous scientific evidence suggested possible adverse health effects from exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF'S) and the use of mobile phones. According to some studies EMF induced changes of trans-membrane Ca++ flux may lead to altered metabolism and/or secretion of neurohormones including TSH, ACTH, GH, prolactin and melatonin. The aim of this research was to analyse the effects of mobile phone use on thyroid function and to evaluate the possible role of occupational stress. 2598 employees (1355 men and 1243 women) with different duties (vendors, operators and network technicians) were included in the study. Exposure to EMF'S, generated by mobile phones, was assessed both by submitting a questionnaire directly to the employees and acquiring data regarding conversation times. The workers were divided into three groups on the basis of their personal mobile phone use. Moreover, a group of 160 workers with TSH values below 0.4 UI/l was characterized. No statistically significant difference regarding TSH values below 0.4 UI/l was observed among workers with different duties but there was a greater prevalence of subjects with low SH values among 192 employees with more than 33 hrs./month conversation time; this difference was statistically significant (p<0 .05="" basis="" by="" data="" determined="" emf="" establish="" exposure="" from="" instruments.="" is="" it="" mobile="" not="" o:p="" of="" on="" our="" phones="" possible="" result="" stress="" the="" these="" this="" to="" using="" whether="">

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15345189

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Black DR, Heynick LN. 

Radiofrequency (RF) effects on blood cells, cardiac, endocrine, and immunological functions.

Bioelectromagnetics. 


2003;Suppl 6:S187-95.

Abstract

Effects of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RFEMF) on the pituitary adrenocortical (ACTH), growth (GH), and thyroid (TSH) hormones have been extensively studied, and there is coherent research on reproductive hormones (FSH and LH). Those effects which have been identified are clearly caused by heating. The exposure thresholds for these effects in living mammals, including primates, have been established. There is limited evidence that indicates no interaction between RFEMF and the pineal gland or an effect on prolactin from the pituitary gland. Studies of RFEMF exposed blood cells have shown that changes or damage do not occur unless the cells are heated. White cells (leukocytes) are much more sensitive than red cells (erythrocytes) but white cell effects remain consistent with normal physiological responses to systemic temperature fluctuation. Lifetime studies of RFEMF exposed animals show no cumulative adverse effects in their endocrine, hematological, or immune systems. Cardiovascular tissue is not directly affected adversely in the absence of significant RFEMF heating or electric currents. The regulation of blood pressure is not influenced by ultra high frequency (UHF) RFEMF at levels commonly encountered in the use of mobile communication devices.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14628314
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