Mobile phone mastsfor next-generation
mobile networks pose no risk to the public, research from the
University of Essex has concluded.
A team of independent scientists at the University of Essex
tested 44 people who had previously reported symptoms or
sensitivity to mobile phone technology, and 114 people who had not
reported any health effects (controls), at a specially designed
laboratory.
The three-year study found that
physiological measures such as heart rate, blood pressure and skin
conductance were not affected by whether the mast was switched on
or off, and did not detect any significant effects in either
sensitive or control participants between
GSM (conventional) exposure and no exposure.
However, the study did find that, compared with controls,
sensitive individuals reported more symptoms and greater severity
of symptoms, as well as higher skin conductance (which is a good
measure of physiological response to environmental stressors),
regardless of whether the signal was on or off.
Elaine Fox, a professor in cognitive neuroscience, said, 'It is
clear that sensitive individuals are suffering real symptoms and
often have a poor quality of life. It is now important to determine
what other factors could be causing these symptoms, so appropriate
research studies and treatment strategies can be developed.'
The study, which was funded by the
Department of Health's Mobile Telecommunications and Health
Research (MTHR) programme, used a wireless cellular network
installed by Red-M, a wireless professional services company and
systems integrator.
Comment on this article:
computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk