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| |  | | (This debate is closed and is a read-only archive.) | | We're seeing a cancer epidemic across Europe
[24-Oct-2005]
| The UK has allowed the highest output of radiation in the world. It recently adopted lower levels of radiation, by accepting guidelines set by the International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP). The ICNIRP standard, however, doesn't offer any form of protection other than from the heating effects of microwave radiation. In other words, the ICNIRP standard only protects your body from properties of high levels of elevated temperatures. A very substantial body of peer-reviewed science clearly shows that many biological changes have already happened.
| The government and the Health Protection Agency Radiation Protection Division (formerly known as the National Radiological Protection Board) now admit that magnetic fields at power levels of 0.4µT double the risk of contracting leukaemia. While other European countries have brought down their power levels to 1-2µT, the UK remains 100 times higher. They UK authorities admit that they've known about this for over three years - see Findings of higher childhood leukaemia up to 600m from powerlines greatly extends findings from previous international studies, including those in the UK.
| The government has taken over £22billion in the selling of the licences to the mobile phone industry. It put £3.5million back into research, along with £3.5million from the mobile phone industry. Further support was announced on November, 04 for research on three additional studies for the Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research Programme. While we welcome further research, we're concerned that it lacks true independence, and would prefer the funding to go to an independent group of scientists.
| Other countries' medical professions recognise that some people are sensitive to non-ionising radiation. Sweden now has a medical register of 285,000, and California 700,000. We believe that these figures are underestimated, since many people aren't aware that their symptoms are connected to a condition known as electrosensitivity or hypersensitivity. If the same figures apply to the UK, this could indicate that over 2.1million people are knowingly or unknowingly affected by electromagnetic fields.
| Head of the Health Protection Agency (HPA) William Stewart has called for the precautionary principle to be invoked, especially where children are concerned, as they'll absorb a higher dose of radiation and for a longer period of time. A recent news report in the Sunday Times, must have been based on advance information from the HPA study indicating that electrosensitivity is a valid condition, prior to contrary statement by the World Health Organisation. We live in hope of unmoderated analysis of Neil Irvine's data, and wait anxiously for the much delayed HPA report, now due to be released in October 2005.
| Throughout the UK, we're now seeing evidence of cancer clusters appearing in radiation from phone masts after long-term exposure. There appears to be a cancer epidemic across Europe, with younger people developing this deadly disease.
| The Naila study of 2004, conducted over 10 years, was released by Germany's Federal Office for Radiation Protection. Medical doctors compiled case histories from 1994 to 2004, looking at heightened risk of taking ill with malignant tumours. They discovered a threefold increase after five years exposure to microwave radiation from a mobile phone mast transmitter, for up to 400m distance, compared to those patients living further away.
| A 2004 study by Ronni Wolf and Danny Wolf of the Kaplan Medical Centre in Israel discovered a fourfold increase in cancer within 350m after long-term exposure to microwave radiation from a mobile phone mast, and a tenfold increase specifically among women, compared to patients living away from the mast. Five other short-term mobile phone mast studies have also found significant health effects, such as headaches, dizziness, depression, fatigue, sleep disorder, difficulty in concentration and cardiovascular problems.
| Eileen O'Connor, trustee of the Electromagnetic Radiation Research Trust and founder of Seriously Concerned Residents Against Masts, UK
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