Resources: RF sources, exposures and health effects - EMF Services

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Resources: RF sources, exposures and health effects

Type of information	Sources
General reviews and information on RF fields (these reports mostly go into a lot of detail, but usually provide a brief summary of key findings and conclusions).	At the request of Health Canada, in 2014 the Royal Society of Canada reviewed proposed changes to the Canadian RF exposure limits (which are similar to those used in New Zealand), and whether they provide adequate protection. A public summary is also available. The Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA) published a review of the scientific literature covering the period 2000 - 2012 in 2014. The Nordic radiation safety authorities issued a brief statement on the safety of exposures from mobile phones, base stations and wireless networks in December 2013. The Norwegian Institute of Public Health published an assessment of health risks of low-level RF fields, and an evaluation of regulatory practice, in September 2012. An English version of the summary is available. The Swedish Council for Working Life and Social Science Research has published (June 2012) a review of research carried out in the previous ten years, concentrating on mobile telephony. The UK Health Protection Agency's Advisory Group on Non-ionising Radiation published a comprehensive review in April 2012. The Health Council of the Netherlands reviewed the effects of RF fields on children's brains in 2011. A chapter from a book on wireless communications provides a brief overview of over 30 "expert group" reports published between 2009 and 2011. The International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), an independent scientific organisation recognised by the WHO for its expertise in this area, published a review in 2009. There is an English summary of a French expert group report prepared in 2009, and a second report published in 2013. The UK Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research programme published its first report, covering research into areas such as cancer, electrical hypersensitivity, brain function and biological interactions, in 2007. A second report, covering more work on cancer, the effects of signal modulation, and exposure assessment, was released in 2014.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) 2011 classification of RF fields	IARC published a press release and a brief summary of their findings (access to the summary is free, but you have to register on The Lancet website). The full IARC monograph was published in April 2013 There are interesting discussions of the IARC classification by Cancer Research UK and in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
RF exposure levels in the environment	A summary of exposure levels found in Europe was published in 2011. A literature review of exposure measurements was prepared in 2010 as part of the European SEAWIND project (a research programme to investigate exposures to RF fields from wireless network devices - WiFi etc - and carry out a health risk assessment).
Whether using a cellphone is harmful or not	Many organisations have published information sheets about cellphones, including the WHO (who also have a brief Q&A), Cancer Research UK, the United States FDA and National Cancer Institute, and Health Canada. The Health Council of the Netherlands reviewed studies of brain tumours in cellphone users in 2013. A second review covering animal cancer studies was published in 2014, and an update and overall conclusions on whether mobile phones cause cancer in 2016. The final report of the Interphone study, a multi-country study co-ordinated by the International Agency for Research on Cancer which investigated whether using a cellphone increased risks of developing brain tumours, was published in 2011.
WiFi	The Australian Radiation Safety and Nuclear Safety Agency measured WiFi and other RF field exposures in Australian schools in 2017. Results and recommendations from a major project investigating WiFi exposures in schools carried out by the UK Health Protection Agency. Measurements of WiFi exposures in a "simulated classroom setting" were published by Industry Canada in May 2012, and Health Canada has an information sheet on WiFi.

Check out also the references to general EMF reviews which cover both RF and ELF fields.

Last updated: 12 December 2017