Do Cell Phones Cause Cancer - Essay Example

?Do cell phones cause cancer? Cell phones are unavoidable at present in human life because of the huge assistance it provides to us in keeping in pace with the rapidly moving life. Instant communication is necessary for people to take quick decisions to counter life challenges and for that purpose the utility of cell phones cannot be neglected. It should be noted that even computers or internet are inferior to cell phones when it comes to instant communication. People keep cell phones in their pocket most of the times and therefore it is easy to locate or contact a person at any time. Some say that cell phones are linked to higher occurrences of cancer and other ailments, while other studies report that cell-phone users have no higher rate of cancer than the population as a whole. No study to date has provided conclusive evidence that cell phones can cause any of these illnesses. However, there are ongoing studies that are examining the issue more closely (How Cell-phone Radiation Works) Even though cell phones brought many benefits to human life, many people are of the view that it brought many challenges also. Vehicle accidents caused by cell phone use while driving are increasing day by day. Some people believe that cell phone usage inside the airplanes can cause safety related problems. There are many studies which proved that cell phone radiations can cause brain tumor as well as cancer. It should be noted that cellphones generate many radiations while sending and receiving calls. Many people are of the view that these radiations can cause cancer. This paper analyses the question; whether cell phones cause cancer or not. A study conducted among 10 female volunteers to learn more about the cellphone radiation effects of people, the following results were obtained;1) Out of the 580 different proteins screened, two proteins were altered in all of the volunteers; 2) One protein increased by 89 percent, and the other decreased by 32 percent and 3) Even without heating, molecular level changes take place in response to exposure to cell phone frequency electromagnetic radiation (How cellphone radiations can Affect Your Cells?) The above results clearly suggest that cell phone radiations can cause many changes in our body. Alpha, beta, gamma and X rays are normally come under the radiations category. Alpha and Beta rays can cause huge changes in the proteins because of its ability to ionize other objects whereas gamma and X rays have the ability to penetrate deep into the human body and alter chemical reactions inside the body. In short, all these radiations can cause huge changes in our body which may lead towards cancer like diseases. “According to a recent report from the U.S. General Accounting Office, at high levels, radio-frequency energy can rapidly heat biological tissue and cause damage such as burns” (How Cell-phone Radiation Works). In wireless communications, the processes called modulation and demodulation are taking place. Sound waves do not have the ability to travel long distances because of its lower frequency. It should be superimposed with some kind of carrier waves having higher frequency to travel long distances. This process is called modulation and the waves generated as a result of modulation is called modulated waves or radio waves. In other words, modulated waves consist of sound waves as well as carrier waves. Cellphones isolate sound waves from carrier waves in order to make the modulated wave audible to us. Same way while sending sounds produced by us, the same modulation process is taking place inside the cellphones. Thus, cellphones are equipment which handles high frequency radiations which are harmful to human health. “Modulated information-carrying radio waves resonate in biological frequencies of a few to a few hundred cycles per second, and can stimulate your cellular receptors causing a whole cascade of pathological consequences that can culminate in fatigue, anxiety and ultimately cancers” (How cell phone radiations can Affect Your Cells?). A cellular phone is basically a radio that sends signals on waves to a base station. The carrier signal generates two types of radiation fields: a near-field plume and a far-field plume. Living organisms, too, generate electromagnetic fields at the cellular, tissue, organ, and organism level; this is called the biofield. Both the near-field and far-field plumes from cell phones and in the environment can wreak havoc with the human biofield, and when the biofield is compromised in any way, so is metabolism and physiology (Kovach). The above findings underline the influence of cell phone radiation upon human body. It should be noted that human brain is also producing some kind of electromagnetic radiations while communicating with other parts of the body. The interference of cell phone generated radiations and brain generated radiations may cause lot of changes in human metabolism. “A considerable body of evidence proves, beyond reasonable doubt, that microwave radiation from mobile phones and cordless phones cause a significantly increased risk for brain tumours” (The real truth about the hazards, told by independent scientists). There are many scientists who argue that cell phones do not have the ability to cause cancer. According to Ronald Herberman, director of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, “There's no convincing evidence that cell phone radiation causes cancer. Nor is there plausible biological or physical reasoning for why it would cause cancer” (Wanjek). In Herberman’s opinion, cell phone generated radiations are not strong enough to cause cancer. In his opinion, people spread propaganda without properly studying the striking power of cell phone generated radiations. He has argued that few minutes’ conversation with cell phones may not cause any harm to the person with respect to the radiation exposure. Herberman has also questioned the validity of the theory which says that the heat generated by the radiations of cell phones have the ability make changes in the brain. “Each type of living tissue absorbs radiation at a different frequency. So it is plausible that cell phone radiation bypasses the skin and skull and is absorbed selectively by brain tissue” (Wanjek). In other words, the cancer related threats as a result of over exposure to cell phone radiations are meaningless. According to Dr David Sheffield, of the University of Staffordshire, the arguments that cell phones can cause cancer are inconclusive. He has cited the government-commissioned Stewart report to prove that mobile phones did not appear to harm health (Mobile phone users 'stressed out'). In other words, mobile phone related health problems, especially cancer lack scientific evidences according to the views of Dr David Sheffield. To conclude, it is difficult to conclude whether exposure to radiations generated by cell phones may cause cancer or not. There are different studies which concluded different results with respect to the cancer problems related to cell phone use. Some studies proved that cell phones can cause huge changes in human metabolism and brain functioning. Such studies have proved that brain generated radiations and cell phone generated radiations can interfere each other and cause problems in our body. At the same time, there are many other studies which argue that cell phones do not have the ability to generate intense electromagnetic radiations which can cause cancer. In my opinion, it is better to reduce mobile phone usages as much as possible since we do not have the exact knowledge about the possible threats caused by it. It is a fact that mobile phones have the ability to generate radiations and radiations can cause cancer. Under such circumstances, it is better not to take the risk of overusing of mobile phones. Works Cited “How Cellphone Radiations can Affect Your Cells?” Web. 11 December 2011. “How Cell-phone Radiation Works”. Web. 11 December 2011. Kovach, Sue. “The Hidden Dangers of Cell Phone Radiation”. 2007. Web. 11 December 2011. Mobile Phone Users 'Stressed Out'”. 2006. BBC News. 13 September 2006, Web 11 December 2011. “The Real Truth About the Hazards, Told by Independent Scientists”. Web. 11 December 2011. Wanjek, Christopher. “The Truth About Cell Phones and Cancer”. Web 11 December 2011. Read More