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- Some of Britain's
most popular mobile phones emit the
highest levels of radiation,
according to the largest survey yet conducted
on the issue in
Europe.
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- The analysis of 28 handsets shows the model with the
highest
rating, the Ericsson T28s, leads to almost six times more radiation
being absorbed into the user's head than the lowest, the Nokia
8850.
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- The
findings emerge as hundreds of thousands of mobile
phones are sold in
the run-up to Christmas. Last year 4m were bought over
the holiday
period alone. More than half the British population now own
a mobile,
and a quarter of them are used by those under 17.
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- Although none of the phones
tested in the survey ( published
in Switzerland) broke international
safety regulations, some experts believe
the approved limits, to guard
against heating of the brain by microwaves,
may have been set too high
because possible health risks are still being
investigated.
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- The new tests were
conducted using a method developed
by Professor Niels Kuster, of the
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.
EMC, an Australian company,
tested 28 of the most popular and newest models
available in Europe
with Kuster's technique.
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- Factors such as the position of the aerial and the power
of the headset account for much of the difference in levels. Some of the
newest models are also the most powerful and have higher emission
levels.
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- Emissions are measured using specific energy absorption
rates
(SAR), measured in watts per kilogram, which determine the amount
of
energy absorbed in the user's body.
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- Despite a lack of firm
scientific evidence that radiation
poses a danger, the public is
becoming increasingly wary about using mobiles.
Steve Rudkin, 30, an
electrical contractor from Stamford, Lincolnshire,
said: "I am on
the phone an hour and a half every day with my job.
I found I was
getting severe headaches."
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- Rudkin switched to using a hands-free kit, where an
earpiece
is used instead of holding the telephone directly to the ear.
Since then
the headaches have gone.
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- Some experts, though, believe
hands-free kits may act
as extra aerials and increase exposure to
radiation.
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- The Metropolitan police, in common with several other
organisations, has advised employees to limit mobile phone use on a
"precautionary"
principle, and a planned government leaflet
will advise children not to
use the phones for unnecessary
calls.
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- The
most recent review of international research, published
last month in
The Lancet, concluded that mobile phones have been shown
to cause brain
disturbances such as memory loss.
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- Dr Gerard Hyland, a physicist
from the University of
Warwick, wrote: "Although safety guidelines
do protect against excessive
microwave heating, there is evidence that
the low-
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- intensity, pulsed radiation used can exert subtle, non-thermal
influences. If these influences entail adverse health consequences,
current
guidelines would be inadequate."
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- Hyland said children could be
at greatest risk because
their skulls were thinner and their immune
system was still developing.
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- A government-funded inquiry earlier this year, chaired
by Sir William Stewart, found there was insufficient evidence to say
whether
the radiation was harmful. Stewart said there was no proof the
phones caused
cancer, but concluded: "There is scientific evidence
which suggests
that there may be biological effects below the [safety]
guidelines."
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- An Ericsson spokesman said: "All our phones are
carefully
designed and rigorously tested to comply with all relevant safety
standards and government regulations, which include a substantial safety
margin." He said the company would publish SAR information when the
European standard had been established.
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- A spokeswoman for the
Federation of the Electronics Industry,
which represents manufacturers,
said: "All mobile phones used in Britain
operate within
international exposure guidelines."
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- She said that when a new
European standard for measuring
SAR ratings was agreed, probably next
year, the industry would publish
the values.
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- However, Roger Woods, corporate
public relations manager
for Philips, acknowledged there were health
concerns: "We try to keep
the emissions of our UK phones as low as
possible."
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- Additional reporting:
James Hopkirk, Will Iredale and Senay Boztas
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