California Public Health Department Gives RF Safety Guidelines; CTIA Points to National Studies

Top national agencies found no known health risks from exposure to cellphone radio frequencies, CTIA said Thursday, responding to California Department of Public Health guidelines on how to reduce exposure to RF emissions. “Although the science is still evolving, there are concerns among some public health professionals and members of the public regarding long-term, high use exposure to the energy emitted by cell phones,” said CDPH Director Karen Smith in a Wednesday news release. “We know that simple steps, such as not keeping your phone in your pocket and moving it away from your bed at night, can help reduce exposure for both children and adults." Children’s developing brains may be more affected, she said. CTIA urged consumers to consult the FCC, Food and Drug Administration, World Health Organization and the American Cancer Society, which it said have found no problems. The CDPH report is "not a warning" that RF emissions are harmful but rather provides information for people who are concerned, Smith said in an interview. "We can't say definitively" whether there's a risk, but the department gets daily requests for information about cellphone radiation from Californians, she said. The CDPH released previously unpublished draft guidelines in March in response to a ruling by a Sacramento Superior Court judge. The department had been reviewing RF emissions for several years, but in 2014 when the Center for Disease Control and Prevention released a report, CDPH decided its guidance was redundant and didn't release it, Smith said. Later, after CDPH rejected a Public Release Act request to release the guidelines because it was a draft, a court forced the document's release, she said. But Smith said Wednesday's release was separate from the court case, happening now because CDPH noted cellphone usage is increasing dramatically, including among children. The new release includes the same guidelines as before, but more background on usage, she said.