Radio Waves, Are Communication Towers Dangerous to Human Health - Research Paper Example

Name Course Tutor Date Radio waves - are communication towers dangerous to human health Introduction The safety of communication towers have been debated extensively in science. There is an argument that the electromagnetic fields emitted from the antenna and mobile handsets are non ionizing radiation which carries low amount of energy that cannot break the chemical bonds in the molecules or the energy emitted is not big enough to cause ionization of molecules or atoms. On the other hand, some scientists argue that there is evidence that the electromagnetic radiation that is emitted even at low levels has some effects on human health (Kumar, 2008). Background Radio waves are electro-magnetic fields that exist naturally with different frequencies. They have been used for communication purposes for over a century after the discovery of wireless communication by Tesla and Marconi (Sobot, 2012, 3). It has been contributing towards development in security, culture and other services. It has now become a way of life is it is being used for radio, TV, mobile phone, security forces, weather satellite etc. As the advancement in wireless technologies keeps on increasing rapidly, the use of radio waves will continue to increase especially cell phones. In fact, the cell phone industry has been expanding very fast, with over hundred thousand mobile phone towers across the United States, and is expected to increase even more with time. The mobile phone industry has set what is called safe levels of exposure to radiation, but some health officials and physicists strongly believe that the towers poses public crisis (Fox, 2007, 65). Electromagnetic radiation Electromagnetic radiation consists of magnetic and electric energy waves travelling through space at the speed of light. They can either be natural or manmade. Electromagnetic radiation such as ultraviolet light occurs naturally and is produced by the sun. Electromagnetic radiation that are generated artificially, are meant for radio communication, TV and radio broadcast, radar and other applications. Radio waves carry cell phone and television signals (Hainesworth, 2011, 120). Electromagnetic fields are characterized by the frequency and the wavelength. Electromagnetic radiation can either be non-ionizing radiation or ionizing radiation. Ionizing radiation has got high frequency and short wavelength, with sufficient energy to knock out electrons from the atom orbital and can alter the chemical bonds and DNA molecules. Electromagnetic fields are emitted from the antenna and mobile handsets are said to be non ionizing radiation which are at lower end in the electromagnetic spectrum, and carries low amount of energy that cannot break the chemical bonds in the molecules (Prasad, 2012, 265). In other words, the energy associated with microwave radiation and radio frequency, are not big enough to cause ionization of molecules or atoms. Therefore, they are related to non-ionizing radiation like other forms of electromagnetic radiation which have low frequencies such as infrared light and visible light. It is therefore expected that cell phone has very low radio frequency energy which does not cause damage to the chemical bonds or DNA. However, it should b noted that ultraviolet light can alter the DNA during the process of photosynthesis and it be said to be mutagenic, though it only penetrates tissues superficially. If this is the case, it may suggest that electromagnetic radiation may be possessing deleterious effects on human health if the exposure is long (Reuben, 2010, 195; Kumar, 2008). Radio waves and cellular phone towers Mobile phone stations are basically radio transmitting antennas which are either mounted on the roof tops of a building or on transmitting towers. They are usually located at an optimum height and location so as to cover the area adequately. The height of the antenna ranges from 20 to 200 feet. If someone makes a call, a signal is send from the antenna in the mobile phone to the antenna at the nearby base station. The base station assigns the signal a specific radio frequency channel available, and the voice signals are then transferred to the switching center, before being transferred to the destination. During the call time, the voice signals are relayed back and forth. The radio frequency emitted by the tower is a form of electromagnetic radiation which travels to a distance of up to 2.5 miles (Stephan, 2015, 412). Many towers are being built by telecommunication companies in a rush to get markets in the rapid growing industry. The radio frequencies emitted from these towers have almost the same frequencies as microwaves. According to Kumar (2008), even at low radiation levels, the radiation can cause damage to DNA and the cell tissue, and is associated with cancer, brain tumors, miscarriage, depression and other health problems. In fact doctors from UK had given an alert on children who are under 16 to refrain from using m0obile phones so as to reduce RF radiation. They claim that children are at higher risk because of they have thinner skull and higher rate of growth. Many other professionals who include physicists and scientists have declared pone towers to be harmful to public health. On the other hand, U.S federation communications commission (FCC) which has the responsibility of setting public exposure standards, claims that, the current scientific studies shows that the exposure levels are safe (Kumar, 2008). How the people are exposed to radiation energy The radiation energy from telecommunication towers like the energy from the cell phones is radiated in horizontal direction, with some downwards scattering. This is because the energy radiated from the antenna is emitted as abeam which is narrow vertically and wide in horizontal direction. Therefore, the strength of the frequency radiation below the antenna is low. However, in horizontal plane, the strength of the energy radiated is affected by factors such as overlap with other transmission, the building nearby etc. Base station towers use high levels of power than other mobile towers, but at lower level compared to the television and radio broadcasting stations. The amount of radiation energy decreases as the distance increases from the tower, and decrease even more rapidly in the vertical direction. Consequently, the level of radiation energy exposure at the ground level is low compared to the level of energy exposure at a close range (Deutsches, 2002, 85). There are various reasons that have been provided to arrive at the conclusion that the level of exposure of radiation from the antennas on the public is too low to cause any harm. One of them is that the antennas are mounted at a high level above the grounds, which means that the ground level near a cell phone station has a thousand times less amount of RF energy exposure, less than the limits set out by the FCC and other regulatory bodies. Thus, if a mobile tower has been mounted on the roof, it is likely that someone on the roof may be exposed radio frequency energy greater than those on ground level, because the exposure limit set out by FCC safety limit can only be found directly in front or very close to the antenna. In any case, the RF waves emitted by these towers have no difference from the background levels of RF radiation emitted by other sources like television and radio broadcasting stations (Deutsches, 2002). The second point is that the level of energy of radio frequency (RF) waves is very low compared with other types of radiation which have been proven to be increasing the risks of cancer, such as x-rays, ultraviolet light and gamma rays. The amount of energy of radio frequency radiation emitted by the cellular phone tower is too small to break the chemical bond and free electron in the cell or DNA molecules, just like other forms of strong radiation that may cause cancer (Pinsky, 1995). Another issue relates to the wavelength of the radiation. The wavelength of radio frequency waves is long and the shortest wavelength can only be one or two inches. Thus, it is not likely that the energy from the radio frequency waves could be short enough to cause any effects on the individual cells in the body. Depending on the construction materials for the building, the amount of radiation inside is less than those outside the building. Cement and wood reduces the exposure levels of with factor of 10. In addition, the signals are also transmitted in irregular patterns rather than constantly, thus reducing its impact (Kumar, 2008). Effects on human health Some people believe that working or living near a mobile phone tower may increase the chances of developing cancer or other diseases. However, the claim needs to be supported by evidence. The first and most important part when examining the scientific evidence of the likely health and biological effects of radiofrequency is to examine the two known actions of radio frequency fields from mobile towers and mobile phones may cause thermal effect due to dielectric heating; and non-thermal effect that is not cause increase in temperature in part or the whole body when they are close to the body. It means that the more the mobile phone is used, the higher the temperature increase. However, there has not been any convincing evidence that the radio frequency signals is responsible for the effect (Higgins, 2012). The thermal effect is caused by dielectric heating on the molecules that is commonly seen on non-ionizing radiations like microwaves. Non-ionizing radiations (NIR) does not have sufficient energy to interact with the atoms and break the extra- or intra-molecular bonds, the radiation only cause the agitation of the polar molecule causing the temperature to increase (Higgins, 2012, 325). This has been shown to occur at least for a small change in temperature, because the complex mechanism where the cell react by including heat shock proteins and other molecules. If there is an exposure to a high temperature for a long time, some molecules like proteins are denatured. For low level of exposure to RF waves, small thermal heating may occur on the cells. This has been documented extensively. Thus, RF radiations only have just enough energy to heat up the matter and some currents, but does not seemed to have sufficient energy to cause damage to cell tissues unless the radiation is very strong, which may be possible close to a powerful emitter like television and radio broadcasting towers. Therefore, the current RF power exposure from the cellular phone towers is safe (Pepper et al., 2006, 362). Non-thermal effects are caused by interaction mechanisms which are not caused by direct or indirect increase in temperature. Non thermal effects is said to be causing some changes in the cells such as changes in enzyme level, but it has not been proven to be having health consequences as the body can easily compensate them. Therefore, in relation to the current debate, there are three issues which need to be addressed. One of them is the existence of non-thermal effect, whether they are sufficient to cause harm, and if they can interact with other levels of complexity above it so as to play a part in patho-physiological process and cause of a disease in an organism (Deutsches, 2002). In conclusion, the cell phone technology and its use have expanded over the last two decades. The mobile phone converts the voice signals to impulses which are transmitted through radio waves at frequencies between 800 to 1900 MHz. The effects of RF emitted by the cell phone and the cell phone tower on human health are a subject of intensive debate. There has been not convincing evidences of negative effect on human health. However, many studies shows that the excess use of mobile phones over a long time is associated with health problems like cancer, and brain damage. References Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum. (2002). Current cancer research 2002. Darmstadt: Steinkopff, 85 Fox, W. L. (2007). Making time: Essays on the nature of Los Angeles. Emeryville, CA: Shoemaker & Hoard. 65 Hainesworth, D. (2011). Understanding the properties and behavior of the cosmos: An historical perspective. S.l.: Palibrio, 120. Higgins J., (2012) Satellite Newsgathering, CRC Press, 325 Kumar, N. (November 21, 2008). Health effects of non-ionized electromagnetic radiation. 276. Pepper, I. L., Gerba, C. P., & Brusseau, M. L. (2006). Environmental & pollution science. Amsterdam: Elsevier/Academic Press, p 362. Pinsky, M. A. (1995). The EMF book: What you should know about electromagnetic fields, electromagnetic radiation, and your health. New York, NY: Warner Books. Prasad K. N. (2012). Radiation Injury Prevention and Mitigation in Humans, CRC Press Reuben S. H., (2010) Reducing Environmental Cancer Risk: What We Can Do Now, DIANE Publishing Stephan, K. D. (2015). Analog and mixed-signal electronics. Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley Sobot, R. (2012). Wireless communication electronics: Introduction to RF circuits and design techniques. New York: Springer. Read More

Radio waves and cellular phone towers Mobile phone stations are basically radio transmitting antennas which are either mounted on the roof tops of a building or on transmitting towers. They are usually located at an optimum height and location so as to cover the area adequately. The height of the antenna ranges from 20 to 200 feet. If someone makes a call, a signal is send from the antenna in the mobile phone to the antenna at the nearby base station. The base station assigns the signal a specific radio frequency channel available, and the voice signals are then transferred to the switching center, before being transferred to the destination.

During the call time, the voice signals are relayed back and forth. The radio frequency emitted by the tower is a form of electromagnetic radiation which travels to a distance of up to 2.5 miles (Stephan, 2015, 412). Many towers are being built by telecommunication companies in a rush to get markets in the rapid growing industry. The radio frequencies emitted from these towers have almost the same frequencies as microwaves. According to Kumar (2008), even at low radiation levels, the radiation can cause damage to DNA and the cell tissue, and is associated with cancer, brain tumors, miscarriage, depression and other health problems.

In fact doctors from UK had given an alert on children who are under 16 to refrain from using m0obile phones so as to reduce RF radiation. They claim that children are at higher risk because of they have thinner skull and higher rate of growth. Many other professionals who include physicists and scientists have declared pone towers to be harmful to public health. On the other hand, U.S federation communications commission (FCC) which has the responsibility of setting public exposure standards, claims that, the current scientific studies shows that the exposure levels are safe (Kumar, 2008).

How the people are exposed to radiation energy The radiation energy from telecommunication towers like the energy from the cell phones is radiated in horizontal direction, with some downwards scattering. This is because the energy radiated from the antenna is emitted as abeam which is narrow vertically and wide in horizontal direction. Therefore, the strength of the frequency radiation below the antenna is low. However, in horizontal plane, the strength of the energy radiated is affected by factors such as overlap with other transmission, the building nearby etc.

Base station towers use high levels of power than other mobile towers, but at lower level compared to the television and radio broadcasting stations. The amount of radiation energy decreases as the distance increases from the tower, and decrease even more rapidly in the vertical direction. Consequently, the level of radiation energy exposure at the ground level is low compared to the level of energy exposure at a close range (Deutsches, 2002, 85). There are various reasons that have been provided to arrive at the conclusion that the level of exposure of radiation from the antennas on the public is too low to cause any harm.

One of them is that the antennas are mounted at a high level above the grounds, which means that the ground level near a cell phone station has a thousand times less amount of RF energy exposure, less than the limits set out by the FCC and other regulatory bodies. Thus, if a mobile tower has been mounted on the roof, it is likely that someone on the roof may be exposed radio frequency energy greater than those on ground level, because the exposure limit set out by FCC safety limit can only be found directly in front or very close to the antenna.

In any case, the RF waves emitted by these towers have no difference from the background levels of RF radiation emitted by other sources like television and radio broadcasting stations (Deutsches, 2002). The second point is that the level of energy of radio frequency (RF) waves is very low compared with other types of radiation which have been proven to be increasing the risks of cancer, such as x-rays, ultraviolet light and gamma rays.

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