Does the sandman still come to your house?

By R. Scott Benson, M.D.

Keeping children up at night?

Some worrisome stories were on the evening news last week; but the part of the news broadcast that caught my attention were six ads for medication to promote a peaceful night of sleep.



These ads are having their desired effect as I have more and more families expressing concern about their children’s sleep. They read the stories about shifting school start times to improve teens’ school performance, but the first question they ask me is usually about the latest new medications.

Research is clear: there are many things that should be done before we reflexively open the medicine cabinet.

1. Consider the impact of 24-hour access to electronic communication tools. Does your child keep a cell phone in their room overnight? To talk to whom? 


2. Remove televisions and computers from children’s bedrooms. There is strong evidence that easy access to these devices interferes with sleep.


3. Watch out for shifts in sleep schedules on the weekend. Most of us thought we could stay up late on weekend nights, make up for the sleep by staying in bed until noon on Saturday, and sleep in again on Sunday. But it only takes these two days to reset your biologic clock. No wonder that Monday finds a body at school but the mind is home in bed.


4. Plan evening routines so your child finishes activities (including homework) more than an hour before planned bedtime. It takes a while to settle after an hour of frustrating work on spelling words.

The first step in evaluating any concern about sleep is keeping a careful sleep diary. There are samples available at SleepEducation.com, the website of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. The University of Michigan has a wealth of material on their website devoted to children’s sleep problems.



Sleep tight.

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Posted in: cell phones,children,family,parenting,R Scott Benson MD,Sleep

Cyberbullying: How do you Protect Children from Online Bullies?

By Roberto Blanco, M.D.

With the proliferation of cellular phones and social networking sites, bullying as we once knew it has been changed forever. Gone are the days where the classic nickname pasted on the back or intimidation on the playground were the main forms of peer-to-peer humiliation. Cellular phones with texting and Internet capabilities have allowed adolescents to bully and intimidate their peers at all hours of the day and night. In fact, this type of bullying can begin as early as elementary school.

The meaning and value of friendships and relationships has also been changed. If adolescence wasn´t bad enough, gossip, secrets, and fallouts from former relationships are being broadcast online for all to see. In addition, several high-profile teen suicides have highlighted the importance of educating children about how to protect themselves from cyberbullying and the vicissitudes of the social networking world.

An article in The New York Times identified some of the challenges surrounding cyberbullying, including the roles and responsibilities of children, parents, the schools, and the legal system. The article raises more questions than it provides answers. It makes it clear, however, that children need to be educated about how to prevent cyberbullying, what to do if they are being bullied, and how to use digital media responsibly. Here are some ideas for you and your child to prevent or manage cyberbullying:

• Talk to your children about cyberbullying as they are getting a cell phone or a social networking account. Explain the warning signs of cyberbullying for themselves and towards others. They should have had a firm lesson in the golden rule and how they should be treated and treat others.

• Discuss with your children how to protect themselves from cyberbullying. They should only “friend” actual friends and not just acquaintances on social networking sites. They should not post or send via cell phone anything that they would not want everyone to see. ´Sexting´or the sending of nude photos is strictly prohibited and talk to them about the possible consequences of this type of behavior. Let them know that any photos posted on the Internet, stay on the Internet.

• Monitor your child´s behavior on cell phones and online through frequent conversations. If you think that they may be in danger, you may need to increase the amount of monitoring by getting account passwords or using random cell phone checks.

• Discuss who they can talk to if they are being bullied – parents, a trusted teacher, counselor, or a responsible friend. Adolescents are often wary of talking to parents about this for fear of overreaction, so give them other good options.

• If bullying continues to be a problem, problem-solve with your child. Consider talking to the bullies' parents, school administrators, or if severe enough, to the legal system or law enforcement. Consider changing cell phone numbers or closing accounts.

• If your child is doing the bullying or using the cell phone or social networking account inappropriately after re-direction, consider taking away the cell phone or closing social networking accounts. While there are many positives to this type of technology, remember that it is a privilege and not a right.

For more information, check out the National Crime Prevention Council and http://www.stopcyberbullying.org/. Read more about bullying on HealthyMinds.org. 

Read more »

Posted in: bullying,cell phones,children,cyberbully,internet safety,parenting,Roberto Blanco MD,suicide prevention

Phone Folly

It never ceases to amaze me that so-called experts that get interview time on network or cable TV are so out of touch with the most current  data and research.

Take the comments of  Dr Otis Brawley,  chief medical Officer at the American Cancer Society, on a recent edition of Larry King.
 
Dr. Brawley, an oncologist and obviously someone with a vested interest in maintaining the status quo, would have you believe that using Blue Tooth or a wired cell phone head set is safe.

I hate to alert Dr. Brawley to the facts of Blue Tooth use, but it has been associated with hearing loss as well as the development of neuromas on the side of the head most frequently used. 

He must also have missed Dr Geroge Carlo's seminal studies completed over a decade ago that indicates the risks of using wired head sets.

Current EMF warnings urge cell phone users to use the speaker phone function on the phone and to keep it at the farthest distance possible, or to text rather than talk.

Air tube head sets are recommended over wired, but may have some concern, and using an EMF guard is advised.

But then, the cancer industry might be reduced in size and expense if we looked to other real experts in the field.

So, Larry, when can we get some people who know the facts to be interviewed on your show?



Dr. Carlo's websites:
Science and Public Policy Institute (SPPI) - SPPI is a 501(c)(3) organization devoted to advancing scientific and policy debate in the public health arena.
Safe Wireless Initiative (SWI) - SWI is a program under the Science and Public Policy Institute dedicated to informing the public about the wireless radiation safety issues.
Mobile Telephone Health Concerns Registry (MTHCR) - Operating under the SPPI, the MTCHR was created to gather voluntary information directly from cellular telephone users, particularly those with concerns relating to cell phone use and subsequent health effects. Designed to count and track these effects, the Registry is a critical step toward further scientific understanding of how to control those health risks.

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Posted in: Cancer,cell phones,Larry King,Otis Brawley,Safe Wireless

Cell Phones, Other EMF Exposure and Your Health

UPDATE: 17 May -

Longterm study links cellular use with cancer and more to review

MAY IS ELECTROSENSITIVITY MONTH, many states are promoting this as a health education event.

Cell Phone Radiation Levels

FCC Consumer Resources: Wireless Devices

Even though some people who submit comments seem to assume that I am not aware of the physics and mechanics of transmission from cell towers (http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/2010/04/parents-stop-palm-tree-cell-tower.html) The opposite is true.

I venture to guess that the anonymous poster isn't as aware as the cell phone companies who include the risks in their patents, or the work of Dr. Neil Cherry.

Now the FCC admits the cancer link, something I've been reporting for more than a decade -
-"Mobile phones could cause cancer, government agencies admit" 28 April 2010

The possible health hazards from long-term use of mobile phones are finally being taken seriously by agencies in the UK and USA after years of denials that there was any risk. In the USA, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is now recommending that people use an earpiece or headset with a cell (mobile) phone following reports that "wireless device use can be linked to cancer and other illnesses", while the UK is starting a major study of health problems from long-term use. The FCC's latest set of guidelines represents a huge shift, and for the first time acknowledges that there could be a health danger in using a cell phone. Apart from using an earpiece or headset, it recommends that users should keep phones away from the body, and should not attach them to a belt or leave them in a pocket that's next to the body; users should use the speaker option so that the phone is kept further away from the head.

To make it simple, the transmission of the microwave energy used to make your cell phone or other device work is because of communication between the device and the antenna.  Inside a building the energy required to make this connection occur is greater.

The array of emissions from the antenna is not a lineal beam (vertical or horizontal) because the pattern of the array emitted from the antenna (or more than one which is usual) takes on the from of similarity to an open umbrella.

Another consideration is the SAR level of the device and if you do a modicum of research you find that as the 3G and 4G devises proliferate the SAR levels increase.

The point is it requires a circle of no less than 6 feet in diameter  from you if you are on a cell phone or using wifi to protect another person from the radiation your device is emitting.  This is your choice if you want to have this exposure but don't think that other people, a baby you are carrying, or a small child wants the same risk.

And please do not listen to the cellular company propaganda, do your own thorough and definitive research.

Read more »

Posted in: cell phones,EMF,SAR levels,wireless

May: ELECTROMAGNETIC SENSITIVITY AWARENESS MONTH

A Better Way to Celebrate Earth Day
Coming in May 2010 - More on Electrosensitivity Month

Help Stop a Cell Tower Today

UPDATE July 2009: Additional information can be found here

6 May 2009

A report I received this morning in one of the many resources I review included this article.

See Also: http://mcs-america.org/June2009pg12345.pdf

Because Charlie Crist, Florida's governor, proclaimed May as Electromagnetic Sensitivity Month I felt it important to include a reference to the following article. Along with a concern about rising rates of thyroid cancer I think it is worthwhile to consider the implications of fluoride in the water supply, fluoride in many drugs and in pink salt or found in other places along with increasing cell phone use and increasing rates of exposure to ionizing radiation or depleted uranium as vectors for this serious health concern.

Thyroid Cancer Increasing, Scientists Don't Know Why

ScienceDaily (2009-05-05) -- It's a medical mystery that has been developing for at least a decade: thyroid cancer --- not breast, prostate, lung, or colon cancer --- is the fastest increasing cancer among women and men in the United States. ...  Read full article

Saturday, March 28, 2009
ELECTROMAGNETIC SENSITIVITY AWARENESS MONTH

Make a Note of This - MAY 2009
The Mayor of Broward County (Fort Lauderdale and area), Florida, The Honorable Stacy Ritter has proclaimed May 2009 as ELECTROMAGNETIC SENSITIVITY AWARENESS MONTH.

EHS is a serious and growing illness that most politicians and doctors in North America are not willing to even talk about. Thanks to the brave and sensible stance of Mayor Ritter and her council, EHS will now get the recognition that it deserves.

What is Electrohypersensitivity from Martin Weatherall

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Posted in: cell phones,depleted uranium,electromagnetic sensitivity month,fluoride,natural health news,pink salt,thyroid cancer

Oprah and Oz: Maybe their answers are missing something

I happened to notice a link to the Oprah show bulletin broad and their Q & A for Dr Oz having to do with vitamin D, Fosamax, cell phones and irregular heart beat.

What stuck me is that one of the queries posted was by a woman who had been told by her doctor that her vitamin D level at 38.4 was good.

Hopefully her doctor tested for 25 OH or Vitamin D3.  If you'd like to know the range for results, please see this excerpt from my recent issue of herbalYODA Says! - If you're not a subscriber, request a copy with your donation to CHI (www.leaflady.org)

" The base level for vitamin D for both adults and children is 50 nanograms/mL If your level is below 50 then you will use it as fast as it is made, and you may be at risk for deficiency. This is more of a concern for people of color, those who do not go in the sun, those who are confined or live in climates where it is darker in winter, and those who wear clothing that covers the entire body.

Blood serum levels above 80 ng/mL allow for reserve storage. Levels above 200 ng/mL are thought to be toxic. The optimal range at all times is between 50 and 80ng/mL for adults and children."

Often you find that today's doctors are remiss in their ability to interpret lab results according to the most current research. Old levels for Vitamin D are 30, and even our own misguided FDA is considering raising the daily intake to 1000 mg.

This lack is virtually universal for thyroid testing, especially made worse because of the failure to order the correct tests.

Irregular heart beat associated with Fosamax may be related to the fluoride content of the drug which has a negative effect on thyroid function.  Thyroid dysfunction is often a symptom of excessive exposure to fluoride, because fluoride displaces iodine which is a key nutrient for a healthy thyroid. Iodine is also displaced by chlorine and bromine (halogens).

Electromagnetic fields (EMF) created by cell phones do now show that there is a alteration of thyroid function.  This can be linked to irregular heart beat either from EMF (especially when exposed to WIFI) or thyroid dysfunction. This also has implications for an increased risk of breast cancer.

You can order both the vitamin D test and thyroid panel, or other tests, from CHI.  And many states allow you to order your own.  We also provide a service that includes interpretation of what lab results mean for your health.

NB: Our upcoming herbalYODA Says! program on BTR for April will be about thyroid.

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Posted in: cell phones,Dr. Oz,Fosamax,irreguular heart beat,mammogram suppresses thyroid,Oprah,Vitamin D

The Rising Incidence of Cell Phone Tumours

US should study WIFI health impact

Cell Phone Towers and Your Health

GQ is just out with a lengthy article about cell phones and your health.  The good news is that the writer,  Christopher Ketcham, is really looking at the history and the science as well as anecdotal data, and he should be applauded.

This follows on the Oprah show aired in my market yesterday where she talked about her campaign to stop people from texting and talking while driving.

I'm often disappointed in Oprah because she does some things in sort of a half-assed way.  In this instance nothing in her campaign addresses the increased risk of breast cancer associated with cell phone use as well as the damage it can do to your thyroid gland, your heart, adrenal glands, kidneys, and your bones.

So Oprah, expand your horizon!

As our long time followers know, we have been writing on the risks of cell phones for about 15 years now.  The research that shows the risks does back to the 1940s.  Ketcham picks up in the 60s and to show how responsible his article is, he includes the work of Dr, Henry Lai from the University of WA.  And he asks, "So why isn't anyone in America doing anything about it?"

My 30-something niece just died of a brain tumour last October.  My daughter who has a PR firm in Seattle is working with an organization that focuses on brain tumour research.  I don't know how my niece developed this tumour but I can only raise the concern about cell phones, microwave ovens and cooking, the use of wifi, digital tv, microwave towers where the cellular antennae are perched and any other factor that I am convinced have a serious impact on health.  I believe this to such a degree that I began teaching programs on this topic for health providers about a decade ago.

Its a touchy issue, politically, as the cell phone companies have paid out a bundle to MOC's (members of Congress) to control this issue their way.  Its reported to be in excess of $8 billion.

"That the cell-phone industry, which last year posted revenues in the hundreds of billions of dollars, has an incentive to shut down research showing the dangers of cell-phone use is not a radical notion."

I have over 100 posts involving EMF here at Natural Health News,  and much more on my web site.  All I ask is that you start waking up to the risk you do to your self - and your health - daily with your cell phone and other EMF generating devices.

In this quote from Ketcham's article, and EPA physicist said, "The Department of Defense didn't like our research because the exposure limits that we might recommend would curtail their activities.", I can't help think of the role HAARP is playing in today's world, and how its very high powered EMF is making havoc.

Washington state had rules affecting employees and EMF exposure in 1978.  The history of suppression of information you had the right to know has systematically been suppressed.  It is past time to get the truth.  Ignore the half truth and faulty studies from the cellular industry, ignore convenience and move in favor of fact.

Read more »

Posted in: brain,brain tumour and cell phones,cell phone danger,cell phones,Christopher Ketcham,GQ,Oprah,tumor,tumours

Cell Phones: An Odd Treatment for Alzheimer' s

UPDATE: Jan 31, 2010: An opinion on this issue from Andrew Goldsworthy BSc PhD

He ends his comments with the following -

The take-home story


To sum up, it is perfectly possible that unmodulated microwaves could mitigate the effects of Alzheimer’s disease, but modulated microwaves are likely to do more harm than good. So now may not be the time to buy granny a mobile phone, but we should nevertheless look more carefully at the effects of unmodulated radiation. It may really help, but we still need to proceed with great caution.

Dr. Goldsworthy was a Lecturer in Biology (retired), Imperial College London, Copyrighted © 2010
http://mcs-america.org/mcsanewsfebruary2010.htm#_Do_Mobile_Phones
 
Most likely it is best to rely on precaution.

Jan 9, 2010
Cell phones are a cause of brain cancer, usually in the form of a glioma which seems to be more common these days.  My 33 year old niece recently died from glioma but I don't know anything about her cell phone use, or whether or not she ingested aspartame.  It is cause for wonder.

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/2009/04/mobile-phones-more-dangerous-than.html

Now I am one of those people whom others always seem to think I know everything - sorry but I don't - however, I know a lot more than most.  I'm also very actively engaged in reading the literature and nitpicking the data. Just one of those science nuts I guess you'd call me, with a bent toward accuracy in the use of the scientific method which doesn't seem too prevalent today.

One of the most ludicrous things I've heard lately is that some researcher alleges using a cell phone can help people with Alzheimer's.  Cell Phone Radiation Can Prevent, Reverse Alzheimer's in Mice

I don't know about you but I am not interested in taking a change of glioma in order to forestall ALZ.

Too bad that more aren't turning back to the future and doing simple things like avoiding anything with fluoride, making sure their thyroid is in great health and demanding B12 shots.

To me this is just another one of those studies that someone or some agency or corporation funded that keeps a few people on the payroll while doing little to have an actual impact on disease prevention and cure.

If you're interested in this topic, use our search function, we've posted over 30 articles here at Natural Health News about Alzheimer's.

In Maine and San Francisco efforts are now underway to require brain cancer warnings on cell phones: There is reason to follow precautionary principles if you value your health.

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Posted in: Alzheimer's,brain cancer,cell phones

Headphone risk to pacemakers

PEOPLE with pacemakers know to keep magnets and electronic devices, such as cellphones, away from the implant to avoid interference. But now it seems even the tiny magnets in headphones pose a risk.

It's still safe to use them, says Kevin Fu at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, who carried out the study. Just don't keep them in breast pockets.

Fu and colleagues tested eight different headphones by holding them near the implants of 100 people. They found that in nearly a third of cases the magnets interfered with the device (Heart Rhythm, DOI: 10.1016/j.hrthm.2009.07.003).

Headphones containing neodymium were the most problematic, as the magnetic fields generated were very strong for the headphones' size, says Fu.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20427346.500-headphone-risk-to-pacemakers.html

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Posted in: cell phones,EMF,head phones,magnets,pacemakers,risk to heart conductivity

More Proof of Cell Phone Distraction

Cell Phone Ringtones Can Pose Major Distraction, Impair Recall

ScienceDaily (2009-06-03) -- A flurry of recent research has documented that talking on a cell phone poses a dangerous distraction for drivers and others whose attention should be focused elsewhere. Now, a new study in the Journal of Environmental Psychology finds that just the ring of a cell phone may be equally distracting, especially when it comes in a classroom setting or includes a familiar song as a ringtone. ... > read full article

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Posted in: cell phone distrction,cell phone distrction when driving,cell phones,natural health news

Mobile phones 'more dangerous than smoking'

UPDATE: 29 May
Professor warns of cellphone health hazards

TOP 100 EMF Resources

MOBILE phones DO increase the risk of brain cancer, scientists claimed yesterday.

The chances of developing a malignant tumour are "significantly increased" for people who use a mobile for ten years.
The shock finding is the result of the biggest ever study by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, part of the World Health Organisation.

Scientists found a type of brain tumour called glioma is more likely in long-term mobile users.

French experts analysed data from 13 countries, including Britain.

They cross-referenced various types of tumours with mobile use.

Researchers admit the cause is unknown, but it is thought radiation from handsets could be the trigger.

Study chief Professor Elisabeth Cardis said: "To underestimate the risk would be a complete disaster."

Just a reminder, as more word of hearing loss is coming. The increase is believed to be associated with Blue Tooth ear adapters since states are adding more hands free laws. Cordless phone use at home and increased use of cell phones in place of land lines also are implicated.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article1814931.ece

March 30, 2008
Mobile phones 'more dangerous than smoking'
By Geoffrey Lean

Brain expert warns of huge rise in tumours and calls on industry to take immediate steps to reduce radiation

Mobile phones could kill far more people than smoking or asbestos, a study by an award-winning cancer expert has concluded. He says people should avoid using them wherever possible and that governments and the mobile phone industry must take "immediate steps" to reduce exposure to their radiation.

The study, by Dr Vini Khurana, is the most devastating indictment yet published of the health risks.

It draws on growing evidence – exclusively reported in the IoS in October – that using handsets for 10 years or more can double the risk of brain cancer. Cancers take at least a decade to develop, invalidating official safety assurances based on earlier studies which included few, if any, people who had used the phones for that long.

Earlier this year, the French government warned against the use of mobile phones, especially by children. Germany also advises its people to minimise handset use, and the European Environment Agency has called for exposures to be reduced.

Professor Khurana – a top neurosurgeon who has received 14 awards over the past 16 years, has published more than three dozen scientific papers – reviewed more than 100 studies on the effects of mobile phones. He has put the results on a brain surgery website, and a paper based on the research is currently being peer-reviewed for publication in a scientific journal.

He admits that mobiles can save lives in emergencies, but concludes that "there is a significant and increasing body of evidence for a link between mobile phone usage and certain brain tumours". He believes this will be "definitively proven" in the next decade.

Noting that malignant brain tumours represent "a life-ending diagnosis", he adds: "We are currently experiencing a reactively unchecked and dangerous situation." He fears that "unless the industry and governments take immediate and decisive steps", the incidence of malignant brain tumours and associated death rate will be observed to rise globally within a decade from now, by which time it may be far too late to intervene medically.

"It is anticipated that this danger has far broader public health ramifications than asbestos and smoking," says Professor Khurana, who told the IoS his assessment is partly based on the fact that three billion people now use the phones worldwide, three times as many as smoke. Smoking kills some five million worldwide each year, and exposure to asbestos is responsible for as many deaths in Britain as road accidents.

Late last week, the Mobile Operators Association dismissed Khurana's study as "a selective discussion of scientific literature by one individual". It believes he "does not present a balanced analysis" of the published science, and "reaches opposite conclusions to the WHO and more than 30 other independent expert scientific reviews".

Read more »

Posted in: blue tooth,Cancer,cell phones,hearing loss,natural health news

Sprint Teams with Oprah

I own a SPRINT PCS phone and I've had one since about 1995. Because it is owned by the 501c3 organization that sponsors Natural Health News, no tax is supposed to be billed to our account.

I can't tell you how many times I have approached SPRINT on this issue. And it comes and goes.

I've applied to SPRINT for a grant to cover our very limited use of the service, but to no avail.

Gee wouldn't it be great to get a brand new top of the line phone and three months service like the promo on Oprah today for all the people in her audience. None with a non-profit group.

And perhaps along with that, Dan Hesse will give all those women who were screaming about this freebie, a copy of my article, based on science, that includes the breast cancer risk of cell phones.

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Posted in: 2009,breast cancer awareness,cell phones,consumer health,Dan Hesse,natural health news,Oprah,Sprint

Yes, Cell Phones Are a Clear and Present Danger

I've said since the late 1990s when I first started looking in to the cell phone issue and its relation to health, that talking and driving did not mix. I even had - and still do - have Click and Clack's "Hang Up and Drive" sticker in the back window of my vehicle.

I shudder every time I see a driver with their phone held up to their ear when I am on the road. And mind you, my state does ban cell phone use except as hands free.

The problem with this is that even hands-free is a danger because of the EMF circulating around in your vehicle while you drive. EMF negatively impacts reaction time and sound decision making, at a time when the roads are much more dangerous than they used to be.

Now take the attitude of Bad Brain and Bad Paul. A couple of fellows that decided they could pull off a fraud and skip out on paying my non-profit a large sum of money they owed us, but liked to poke fun at my stand on cell phones, cell towers, DTV towers and WIFI.

I guess in the end the precautionary principle will win out.

Maybe as the great computer tech IBM sent out the other day to repair my computer said, "Perhaps it is time we all got out our tin foil hats".

Safety council wants total ban on cell phones while driving
From King5 News, Seattle, on January 11, 2009 via Associated Press

WASHINGTON, D.C. - A national safety group is advocating a total ban on cell phone use while driving, saying the practice is clearly dangerous and leads to fatalities.

States should ban drivers from using hand-held and hands-free cell phones, and businesses should prohibit employees from using cell phones while driving on the job, the congressionally chartered National Safety Council says, taking those positions for the first time.

The group's president and chief executive, Janet Froetscher, likened talking on cell phones to drunken driving, saying cell phone use increases the risk of a crash fourfold.

"When our friends have been drinking, we take the car keys away. It's time to take the cell phone away," Froetscher said in interview.

No state currently bans all cell phone use while driving. Six states -- California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Utah and Washington -- and the District of Columbia ban the use of hand-held cell phones behind the wheel, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Also, 17 states and the district restrict or ban cell phone use by novice drivers.

Council officials acknowledged a total ban could take years.

"Public awareness and the laws haven't caught up with what the scientists are telling us," Froetscher said. "There is no dispute that driving while talking on your cell phone, or texting while driving, is dangerous."

Froetscher said the council examined more than 50 scientific studies before reaching its decision. One was a study by the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis that estimates 6 percent of vehicle crashes, causing about 2,600 deaths and 12,000 serious injuries a year, are attributable to cell phone use. Hands-free cell phones are just as risky as hand held phones, she added.

"It's not just what you're doing with your hands -- it's that your head is in the conversation and so your eyes are not on the road," Froetscher said.

John Walls, vice president of CTIA-The Wireless Association, a cell phone trade group, objected to a complete ban. He said there are many instances where the ability to make a phone call while driving helps protect safety.

"We think that you can sensibly and safely use a cell phone to make a brief call," Walls said.

What makes cell phone use distinct from other risky driving behaviors, Froetscher said, is the magnitude -- there are 270 million cell phone users in the U.S. and 80 percent of them talk on the phone while driving.

Froetscher said the council is the first major national safety group to call for a total cell phone ban for drivers. The National Transportation Safety Board has been urging states since 2003 to ban the use of cell phones or any wireless device by inexperienced drivers who have learner's permits or intermediate licenses. Last year, at least 23 states considered some form of legislation to restrict the use of cell phones or wireless devices, according to the board.

Council officials said they will press Congress to address the issue when it takes up a highway construction bill this year, possibly by offering incentives to states that enact cell phone laws.

The Governors Highway Safety Association agreed that cell phone use while driving is dangerous, but said it would be difficult to enforce a ban. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, which is funded by auto insurers, said banning all cell phone use "makes sense based on the research," but agreed that enforcement will be difficult.

October 2008: hot topics

and from 1997
Cell Phones: As dangerous as driving drunk
Report: Using Car Phones Is as Dangerous as Driving Drunk

Related: Hand-free phones just as risky as handheld
February 13, 1997
©Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved ©FOX News Network 1997. All rights reserved.

BOSTON -- The risk of having a traffic accident while using a cellular phone is the same as that while driving drunk, according to a study appearing in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine. University of Toronto researchers found cell phone users four to five times more likely to get into traffic accidents than those who do not use them. "Telephones that allowed the hands to be free did not appear to be safer than hand-held telephones," they said. "This may indicate that the main factor in most motor vehicle collisions is a driver's limitations in attention rather than dexterity." An editorial by Malcolm Maclure of the Harvard School of Public Health and Murray Mittleman of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston said the research was the first "direct evidence that the use of cellular telephones in cars contributes to roadway collisions."

The Toronto study by Dr. Donald Redelmeier and Robert Tibshirani said the risk "is similar to the hazard associated with driving with a blood alcohol level at the legal limit."

A definitive study with people randomly assigned cellular phones so their accident rates could be checked was unlikely because it would be difficult and possibly unethical. Representatives of the cellular phone industry were quick to cite what they said were the study's shortcomings. The Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association, a trade group, said in a statement that the study dealt with an association between accidents and the phones. The researchers did not directly assess whether the phones caused accidents. The association also said cell phone use was way up and traffic injuries were down, showing users drive safely.

Nonetheless, the findings were likely to reverberate through the cell phone and insurance industries, and among drivers and government regulators as well. About 35 million Americans have cell phones. Brazil, Israel and Australia have banned the use of cellular telephones while driving and the new finding may spark similar moves, even though the researchers stressed that there are benefits to the phones, such as the ability of drivers to make emergency calls quickly.

Driver error was responsible for more than 90 percent of motor vehicle collisions, which were the top cause of death among children and young adults, the researchers said.

Redelmeier and Tibshirani used 13 months of accident data and phone billing records of 699 volunteers to pinpoint the time of the accident and determine when a cell phone customer was last using the phone. They also made some statistical adjustments to account for the intermittence of driving.

Among their findings:

-- The risk of an accident was nearly five times higher than normal when a person was on the telephone one minute or five minutes before the accident. The typical call in the study lasted nearly 2 1/2 minutes.

-- The collision rate was four times higher than expected when the call was made less than 15 minutes before the accident.

-- Only after the driver had been off the phone for more than 15 minutes did the risk seem to dissipate.

-- Younger and older drivers with a cell phone faced essentially the same risk.

-- "Subjects with many years of experience in using a cellular telephone still had a significant increase in risk," but the highest risk was among people who had not graduated from high school.

Related: Hand-free phones just as risky as handheld

NUMEROUS RELATED ARTICLES CAN BE FOUND BY SEARCHING NATURAL HEALTH NEWS

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Posted in: cell phone danger,cell phone distrction when driving,cell phones,consumer health,independent health news,natural health news

Talking and Driving Proven to be Distracting, Again

Washington state happens to one of the most regulated states in the US. I know because I have live in Washington for thirty years, with a short traverse to Idaho in 2002.

In addition to being highly regulated, and oppressive, with a bureaucracy not serving the citizens, it believes that it is progressive in its efforts to curb the danger of talking and driving by requiring hands free contraptions.

This isn't even an established public safety matter as older studies have definitely shown that cell phone use while driving - hands free of other wise - is the cause of a high rate of vehicular accidents.

Maybe if Mrs. Gregoire wasn't so intent on protecting the bureaucracy she would demand better outcome from the state agencies with the emphasis on truly serving the public.

Drivers Distracted More By Cell Phones Than By Passengers

ScienceDaily (2008-12-01) -- Drivers are far more distracted by talking on a cellular phone than by conversing with a passenger in an automobile, according to a new study. The study, which used a sophisticated driving simulator, found that when drivers talk on a cell phone, they drift out of their lanes and missed exits more frequently than drivers conversing with a passenger. Passengers react to traffic, unlike a person at the other end of a cell phone conversation. ... > read full article

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Posted in: cell phone distrction when driving,cell phones,hands-free legislation,health news,natural health news,natural news

Now You Don't See It, Yet It Sees You

Here is a writer that is addressing health issues he believes will be up and coming in the next five years.

I've been writing and teaching about these same issues for more than ten years and of course have been ridiculed many times for my thinking on the health risks of EMF and WIFI/microwave.

Things are most likely to get worse after mandated digital TV debuts next February, and its likely your ER doc or health provider isn't aware of how to diagnose or evaluate your symptoms. Or better yet, won't be able to help you treat it or recover.

You´ll Never See It Coming By Alex Richards

In the next five years you may see your health decline. It may start with fatigue and stress. You will awaken un-refreshed. Perhaps you´ll have headaches and find it difficult to concentrate. Out of nowhere will come blue moments and panic attacks. You´ll blame it on your lifestyle. You´re getting older. You will probably never consider the subtle fact: our environment has fundamentally changed..

The US has become increasingly filled with radiation from radio-frequency fields and microwaves. These radio waves create electromagnetic fields (EMF) from cell phones, satellites, military and airport radar, WiFi, security alarms, baby monitors and even remote control toys. Until the late 1980´s these radio waves were mostly generated by commercial or military sources. But then we began to bring microwave transmitters like cell phones, WiFi and microwave ovens right into our lives. Our environment, once filled with only thousands of distant fixed transmitters now has become an environment filled with millions of mobile transmitters, many of which beam EMF into our homes. What was once solely a commercial/military source of microwaves, has given way to the "dark side" of the consumer wireless revolution.

Most of us never noticed. These waves are invisible. We can´t feel, taste, or sense them. But their effects can be observed and measured. While measurements show that the intensity of radio waves in our environment has risen between 50-150 times in the last decade, in an eerie parallel, science has been tracking the explosion of unexplained health impacts.

Scientists have already linked biological effects, symptoms and disease with low-levels of electromagnetic radiation (www.BioInitiative.org). Over 600 studies connect EMF with Cancer, Alzheimer´s, depression, suicide, Autism, Leukemia, DNA damage, heart disease, strokes, chromosome damage, migraines, permeation of the blood brain barrier, activation of stress hormones, decreases in melatonin/ serotonin and immune system suppression (www.marinproject.org). Other studies help explain the list of unexplained stress symptoms you may be already be feeling: fatigue, memory loss, anxiety, concentration issues, chronic joint/muscle pain, sleep disturbances and heat or ringing in your ears.

The Freiburger Appeal (www.WirelessStress.com) with nearly 30,000 signatures by European physicians links cell phones, cordless phones and cell towers with these unexplained stress symptoms. Along with the growth of wireless since the mid-1980´s, there has been a parallel growth of illnesses without a known cause, so-called mystery illnesses and an emergence of dozens of `new age´ diseases, such as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, MS, Lupus, Gulf War Syndrome and Electrohypersensitivity, all of which share the same primary symptoms as the stress symptoms listed above. The link between wireless technologies and the three tiers of health impacts is astonishing: unexplained stress symptoms; "mystery illnesses" and the explosion of "new age" illness.

When you begin to see these stress symptoms coming, you may receive plenty of advice from your family physicians. You will probably fill prescriptions for sleep, pain and maybe even depression. You will gain a sense of management of the symptoms, but they will persist. You will come to accept it.

You will never make the connection to an invisible world of electropollution that has silently exploded around you. You will never suspect that the cell phone in your pocket, or the wireless router that brings you WiFi, could be stealing your health. You´ll go on filling your prescription and explaining the nagging symptoms away. You´ll never see it coming.

and from Sean Arthur Joyce: January 17th, 2008

The Bioinitiatives Working Group of the University of Albany, New York, has undertaken a review of 2000 studies related to bio-effects of electromagnetic fields and has concluded that current safety standards for protecting the public against exposure to EMF are inadequate.

Dr. George Carlo, who was hired by the US telecommunications industry to do the first major study on the issue, had 200 scientists at his disposal in his $28 million study. It was only when his scientific results contradicted the industry’s pre-supposed position of no harm at non-thermal levels of power output that he was marginalized by them and forced to quit.

It was through the industry’s ‘low power exclusion’ that telecom corporations achieved the rare feat of having a consumer product introduced into the North American marketplace with NO pre-market testing!

Brain cancer has risen by 300% worldwide during the past 20 years, roughly concurrent with the widespread use of wireless communications.

And just because we’ve had radio frequency waves in our environment for 100 years doesn’t of itself mean they’ve caused no harm. Cancer in general has soared during the past century.

The World Health Organization has recently admitted (after 30 years of studies to this effect) that children living near high-voltage power lines have a substantially greater risk of developing leukemia.

In any case, it’s up to industry to first prove beyond any reasonable doubt their products are safe, not up to the public to prove otherwise.

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Posted in: cell phones,Digital TV,electro smog,electropollution,EMF,health news,invisible illness,mystery illness,natural health news,natural news,RF,WIFI,wireless

Rash Report, not just CFL bulbs or Splenda: It is your cell phone

The issue of rash being caused by sell phone use is not a new report. This type of reaction has been known for many years but this new study shows - once again - that what you don't know about using a cell phone can and will hurt you.

I first reported on this in 2002 and added the report in the ElectroSmog section on mey web site.

"Can mobile phones give you bad skin?"
Radiation from mobile phones could trigger skin allergies, according to new findings. Scientists have found evidence that microwaves from handsets can worsen allergic reactions to dust mites & pollen, by "exciting" antigens - substances which cause allergies - in the bloodstreams of susceptible people.
Dr. Hajime Kimata from Unitika Hospital, Kyoto, carried out research on 52 people with a history of eczema & dermatitis. Researchers in Sweden claimed earlier this year that mobile phones could damage key brain cells & trigger early onset Alzheimer's. 2002

Perhaps if you read, hear and see this kind of information often enough you will allow the facts to get into your sense of reality. Consider the choice offered here.

Doctors warn of rash from mobile phone use
LONDON (Reuters) - Doctors baffled by an unexplained rash on people's ears or cheeks should be on alert for a skin allergy caused by too much mobile phone use, the British Association of Dermatologists said on Thursday.

Citing published studies, the group said a red or itchy rash, known as "mobile phone dermatitis," affects people who develop an allergic reaction to the nickel surface on mobile phones after spending long periods of time on the devices.

"It is worth doctors bearing this condition in mind if they see a patient with a rash on the cheek or ear that cannot otherwise be explained," it said.

The British group said many doctors were unaware mobile phones could cause the condition.

Safety concerns over mobile phones has grown as more people rely on them for everyday communication, although the evidence to date has given the technology a clean bill of health when it comes to serious conditions like brain cancer.

"In mobile phone dermatitis, the rash would typically occur on the cheek or ear, depending on where the metal part of the phone comes into contact with the skin," the group said in a statement.

"In theory it could even occur on the fingers if you spend a lot of time texting on metal menu buttons."

Nickel is a metal found in products, ranging from mobile phones to jewelry to belt buckles and is one of the most common causes of allergic contact dermatitis, according to the Mayo Clinic in the United States.

Earlier this year Lionel Bercovitch of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island and colleagues tested 22 popular handsets from eight different manufacturers and found nickel in 10 of the devices.

(Reporting by Michael Kahn; Editing by Opheera McDoom, October 2008)

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Posted in: allergy,cell phones,ElectroSmog,EMF,health,mobile phones,natural,natural health news,natural news,News,rash