We recently took a look at the role of
mobile phones in medicine.
Mobile phones are playing a key part in improving medical services in
third world countries and even advancing medical options in first world
nations. However, not all is good when it comes to mobile phones and
health – or at least that’s what some people would have you believe.
There are a lot of people who think that mobile phones cause a great
number of diverse health problems. Whether this is true or not is mostly
undetermined but fears about health problems caused by cell phones
still have some people worried.
Here is a look at the top ten health problems that some people are worried may be caused by mobile phones:
1. Cancer
Despite numerous studies that indicate that there is no conclusive link between
cancer and the use of mobile phones,
there are a lot of people who continue to express fears that they’ll
contract some form of cancer if they use their mobile phones too much.
Basically people are concerned that the radiation emitted by phones is
causing cancer and various types of tumors. This has been an
issue that’s caused a lot of controversy so there are a lot of
scientists and medical experts who have looked into it. The World Health
Organization has even taken up the cause and concluded that neither
cell phones nor their base stations are cancer-causing. Nevertheless,
there are things that you can do to reduce your exposure to radiation
(like keeping your phone away from the body and using special hands-free
devices to talk) that can reduce your risk if this is something that
concerns you.
2. Infertility
Another issue of major concern that has made a lot of headlines over
the years is the concern that mobile phones may be linked to infertility
or reduced fertility. One study last year showed that males who kept
their cell phones turned on while the phones were in their front pockets
were likely to
be
reducing the quality of their sperm
and therefore affecting their fertility. The study turned out to be
fairly inconclusive in terms of the long-ranging effect of cell phones
on fertility but it certainly was a cause for concern for a lot of guys!
3. Accidents
One of the mobile phone health concerns and public safety concerns
that actually does have a lot of validity to it is the link between the
use of mobile phones and increased likelihood of accidents. The number
of car accidents caused by mobile phones is likely to decrease as laws
are strengthened to prevent driving while talking or texting. However,
people who are talking on their cell phones are more likely to do dumb
things like walk into oncoming traffic which poses a serious threat to
your health!
4. Cell Phone Elbow
One of the most recent health problems that mobile phones are accused
of causing is cubital tunnel syndrome, a condition known more widely as
“
cell phone elbow“.
Similar to carpal tunnel syndrome, it is apparently caused by the
frequent and repetitive use of the cell phone. It is said that the
frequent bending of your elbow to hold your mobile phone to your ear can
affect a nerve in your arm that leads to tingling sensations and
reduced use of your hands. Less frequent use of your phone, use of your
phone’s speaker or a hands-free talking device and switching of your
hands when talking on the phone are all ways to combat this rising
problem if indeed it really exists.
Several studies have been conducted which look at the relationship between mobile phone use and
sleep disorders.
A recent study showed that those people who use their mobile phones
shortly before going to bed will have a harder time unwinding and
falling asleep than those people who put their phones away earlier in
the day. A common problem found in people, particularly in teenagers, is
that those people who leave their phones on at night will be regularly
woken up by calls and texts which interrupts sleep and can cause a
number of health problems. The solution to this one is pretty easy,
though: turn off your phone at night!
6. Premature Aging
We haven’t heard much about this one in a long time but just a few
short years ago there was a big scare that made people worried about the
thought that using mobile phones might cause wrinkles and other signs
of
premature aging.
An extensive fifteen-year study into short wave and microwave health
impacts was the cause for the scare. It had a lot of people worried for
awhile; maybe the worry itself lead to some premature aging!
7. Exacerbating Existing Health Issues
There are some cases in which mobile phones are blamed for
exacerbating existing health issues
in people with unrelated diseases. The most common example of this is
the concern that people with heart problems who have had Pacemakers
installed will be affected negatively by the use of mobile phones.
Studies seem to indicate that holding a mobile phone directly on top of
the chest while using it can cause health problems but normal mobile
phone use shouldn’t affect most people with Pacemakers. People with
hearing aids and implantable defibrillators also sometimes report
interference problems when using mobile phones.
8. Vague Daily Health Problems
There are a lot of vague daily and ongoing
health problems
that people regularly try to find a cause for and sometimes those
people blame the use of mobile phones. Fatigue, weight problems, skin
issues and headaches are all examples of vague problems that could have a
number of different causes. Some people say that they have
electromagnetic sensitivity which results in these types of problems when they are around products and devices such as mobile phones.
9. Mental Health Problems.
Is it possible that
cell phones are making us crazy?
Some people have reported a number of different symptoms that indicate
that mobile phones could be increasing our mental health problems.
Decreased attention span, increased anxiety and memory loss are all
problems that have been associated with increased mobile phone use. Few
of these problems have been proven to actually be linked with mobile
phone use though.
10. Affecting Quality of Care from Doctors
Some doctors have
reported
that they feel that the quality of care that they are able to provide
to their patients has decreased with increased cell phone use. This is
due to interruptions and lack of focused attention when mobile phones
are used by patients during doctor’s appointments. Anyone with decent
cell phone etiquette would turn off his mobile phone at the doctor’s
though so hopefully this isn’t affecting too many people! As a general
rule, modern mobile technology actually allows doctors to provide a
higher level of care through reminders and alerts sent to patients’
phones.
