What are the health concerns about mobile phones?
In the last two decades mobile phone use in the UK increased from virtually nothing to almost 74 million mobile connections by the end of 2007. Mobile telephony uses a radio wave network. Mobile phones are small radio transmitters and receivers, typically with a range of a few miles. To send or receive calls, a handset must be within range of a transmitter mast. When a call is made within range of a mast, the mast relays the call to a switching centre, either by underground cable or by microwave, which routes it to the correct destination. If the destination is a mobile phone, it too must be in range of a mast. There are concerns that the radiofrequency (RF) emissions from mobile phone handsets and masts (which also frequently emit microwaves) are damaging to human health, particularly to children. Background With widespread mobile phone use less than 20 years old, scientific knowledge about the health effects is limited. Mobile phone handsets are low-powered RF transmitters, emitting
