France warns of health risks from mobile phones
January 03, 2008
A French health ministry on Wednesday issued a warning against excessive mobile-phone use, especially by children, though it recognized cellular technology had not been scientifically proved to be dangerous.
The appearance on the market of mobile phones designed for young children has raised concern because youngsters would be particularly vulnerable to any possible health effects, the Ministry of Health, Youth, and Sport said in a statement.
“As the hypothesis of a risk cannot be entirely excluded, precaution is justified,” the ministry said.
It recommended that children in particular use mobile phones in moderation, and advised users on how to reduce their exposure to any possible risk.
“One should use a mobile phone with good judgement, avoid calling when reception is poor or during high-speed travel, and, finally, keep the telephone away from sensitive areas of the body by using a hands-free kit,” the ministry said.
A November 2006 report from the World Health Organization (WHO) said available evidence suggests long-term exposure to radio-frequency and microwave radiation from mobile phones had no adverse health effects.
However, the WHO said other studies pointed to an increased risk of tumours in people who have used an analogue mobile phone for more than 10 years.
A British study released in September 2007 said mobile phones did not pose short-term health risks, but scientists noted that studies to date included few participants who had used mobile phones for longer than 10 years the time many cancers take to appear.
The president of France’s AFSSET, an independent but state-funded environmental and safety watchdog group, put it simply: parents should not give small children mobile phones.
“Since they aren’t capable of limiting their use of the telephone, parents should not buy them mobile phones,” Michele Froment-Vedrine told Reuters by telephone.
As of 30 September, there were more than 53 million mobile-phone users in France, about 84 percent of the population, according to the French telecommunications regulator Arcep (Autorite de Regulation des Communications Electroniques et des Postes).
Representatives at Orange, France’s largest mobile-phone operator, were not available to comment.