Aug. 10, 2011
Interview with Devra Davis, Environmental Health Trust founder and president, conducted by Scott Harris
After years of speculation about the health hazards of mobile phone use, a panel of scientists at the World Health Organization reported on May 31 that they’ve concluded using cell phones may increase the risk of developing certain types of brain tumors. A working group of 31 scientists from 14 countries meeting at the WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer announced that their review of all the available scientific evidence suggested cell phone use should be classified as “possibly carcinogenic.”
While some scientists had previously warned about the dangers of cell phone use, the WHO study marks the first time a major health organization has made a connection between mobile phones and cancer. While the study does not definitively show that cell phone use increases the risk of cancer, the health implications are enormous considering that an estimated five billion people, nearly three-quarters of the world’s population, now use mobile phones.
As the WHO study has increased public concern about cell phone safety, the wireless phone industry has attempted to debunk the group’s warning by funding research of its own, which some critics have labeled as blatant propaganda. Between The Lines’ Scott Harris spoke with Devra Davis, founder and president of the group Environmental Health Trust, who discusses the importance of the World Health Organization’s report on the health hazards associated with cell phones and what can be done to reduce the risk.
Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist
Grand Rapids Michigan USA
Congo, Democratic Republic of the Kinshasa,
Papua New Guinea, Port Moresby
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