190Section 13: Health and Safety InformationThis section outlines the safety precautionsassociated with using your phone. The terms “mobiledevice” or “cell phone” are used in this section torefer to your phone. Read this information before usingyour mobile device.Exposure to Radio Frequency (RF)SignalsThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) haspublished information for consumers relating to RadioFrequency (RF) exposure from wireless phones. TheFDA publication includes the following information:Do cell phones pose a health hazard?Many people are concerned that cell phone radiationwill cause cancer or other serious health hazards. Theweight of scientific evidence has not linked cellphones with any health problems.Cell phones emit low levels of Radio Frequency (RF)energy. Over the past 15 years, scientists haveconducted hundreds of studies looking at thebiological effects of the radio frequency energyemitted by cell phones. While some researchers havereported biological changes associated with RFenergy, these studies have failed to be replicated. Themajority of studies published have failed to show anassociation between exposure to radio frequencyfrom a cell phone and health problems.The low levels of RF cell phones emit while in use arein the microwave frequency range. They also emit RFat substantially reduced time intervals when in thestand-by mode. Whereas high levels of RF canproduce health effects (by heating tissue), exposure tolow level RF that does not produce heating effectscauses no known adverse health effects.The biological effects of radio frequency energyshould not be confused with the effects from othertypes of electromagnetic energy.Very high levels of electromagnetic energy, such as isfound in X-rays and gamma rays, can ionize biologicaltissues. Ionization is a process where electrons arestripped away from their normal locations in atomsand molecules. It can permanently damage biologicaltissues including DNA, the genetic material.The energy levels associated with radio frequencyenergy, including both radio waves and microwaves,are not great enough to cause ionization of atoms andmolecules. Therefore, RF energy is a type of non-ionizing radiation. Other types of non-ionizingradiation include visible light, infrared radiation (heat),and other forms of electromagnetic radiation withrelatively low frequencies.While RF energy does not ionize particles, largeamounts can increase body temperatures and causetissue damage. Two areas of the body, the eyes andthe testes, are particularly vulnerable to RF heatingbecause there is relatively little blood flow in them tocarry away excess heat.
