Health Canada sets cellphone use restrictions

A world without cellphones seems unimaginable to many of us, so it’s hard to remember that cellphones are a relatively recent phenomenon.

What’s even harder to do, however, is to definitely prove whether or not cellphone use poses any health risks after only a few decades of use.  This may be why, after years without providing recommendations, Health Canada adopted a precautionary approach last week by announcing guidelines calling for limited cellphone use.

Canadians are encouraged to limit cellphone call length and to text message or use a hands-free device whenever possible (to increase the distance between the cellphone and the user’s head). Those under 18 should be especially careful to limit all cellphone use. Children are still growing and are therefore much more sensitive to external agents such as radiation.

Studies have provided mixed results as to whether the radiation cellphones emit causes brain tumours, but the limited data was enough for the International Agency for Research on Cancer to label cellphones as “possibly carcinogenic to humans” in May of this year.

More research continues to be done, but in the meantime, those that care for their health by eating right and exercising can add limiting their cellphone use to their list of proactive health strategies. When it comes to one’s health, it’s always better to err on the safe side.

Curious to know more? Learn more about wireless technologies, read about cellphone towers, or read Health Canada’s media release.