Transcript Title Slide - Instituto Edumed

LTA EMF update
Sakari Lang, PhD
Chairman, MMF Research Working Group
Head, EMF Research & Standards
Standardization & Industry Relations
NOKIA CORPORATION
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EMF update LTA 2006 / SL
Presentation outline
• Mobile phones – media activity
• RF dosimetry
• Established RF effects
• Exposure guidelines
• Current status of research on mobile telephony and health
• Concluding remarks
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Mobile Manufacturers Forum
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Background to the MMF
• International association of radio equipment
manufacturers
• Representing around 90% of global handset sales; and
• The providers of the majority of global network
infrastructure
• Association's focus: EMF and health
• With particular emphasis on supporting research
• Related areas of activity: standards and regulatory
harmonisation and public communications
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Mobile phone subscriptions
3 billion
by end of 2010
3 000
Mobile phone
2 800
subscriptions
2 600
globally,
millions
2 400
2 200
2 000
1 800
1 600
1 400
1 200
1 000
800
600
400
200
0
Source: Nokia at
3GSM Cannes,
February 2005
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Current global
penetration 28 %
-92 -93 -94 -95 -96 -97 -98 -99 -00 -01 -02 -03 -04 -05
e
-10
e
Mobile telephony & health
• Year 2010 about 3 billion mobile phone users
→ Concerns about adverse health effects
• Biological and potential health effects of RF energy have been
studied for about 60 years
• Biomedical research effort on mobile telephony signals extensive
today
• Effects due to significant RF heating well-established -> fundamental
basis for exposure standards
• Increasing number of anecdotal reports and speculative media
articles
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BIOLOGICAL vs ADVERSE HEALTH
EFFECTS
• A biological effect occurs when exposure to
electromagnetic waves causes some noticeable or
detectable physiological change in a biological system
• An adverse health effect occurs when the biological
effect is outside the normal range for the body to
compensate, and thus leads to some detrimental health
condition
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WHAT DOES PHYSICS TELL US?
Photon energies v. effects on matter
Region
Frequency
Photon energy
(eV)
Effect on matter
Soft X-ray
Visible light
RF fields (radar)
RF fields: (TV/MP)
1018 Hz
1015 Hz
30-300 GHz
100- 2000 MHz
1000
2
0.0001
0.000001
Ionize molecules
Bend molecules
Vibrate molecules
Induce torques on
molecules
?
ELF-MF (e.g. 50 Hz) 0-1 kHz
Reference Valberg 1997
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0.000…001
WHAT DOES PHYSICS TELL US?
• Energy of one 900 MHz photon  0.01% of
average thermal energy (kT) in the body
 significant exposure needed to increase body
temperature
• Energy of one 900 MHz photon is  0.004% of
the chemical bond energy
 breakdown of chemical bond not plausible
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BIOPHYSICS OF RADIOFREQUENCY
FIELDS
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Non-ionizing radiation – effects on
human
Low-frequency electric and magnetic fields Radio frequency electromagnetic fields
Optical radiation
f = 0 - 30 kHz
f = 30 kHz – 300 GHz
f = 300 GHz-1000 THz
 =  – 10 km
 = 10 km – 1 mm
 = 1 mm – 100 nm
Electric field
Magnetic field
Radiowave
Optical radiation
Surface
charge
Heating,
photochemical
reactions
Currents
Circulating
currents
Heating
Epidermis
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Dermis
Established thermal effects for RF
Fields of 1 MHz - 10 GHz
• A whole-body SAR of at least 4 W/kg (1 °C temperature rise) is
needed to produce physiological effect (behavioral disruption in
laboratory animals)
• Birth defects, if the temperature rise of the fetus by 2-3 °C for hours
• Under most environmental conditions, a given tissue or organ (and
probably body) must attain a temperature of at least 43 °C before a
level constituting a hazard may be reached such as cataract
formation (power density 1000 W/m2, SAR > 100 W/kg)
• The time required to produce a full thickness burn in human skin
ranges from 100 min at 45 °C to ~5 sec at 60 °C
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Established critical temperature levels (produced by RF
energy or other types of heating) in various species, organs
or tissues leading to adverse biological effects
Endpoint
Heat stroke
Human (core
temperature)
Human (brain
temperature)
CNS deterioration
Human (CNS)
Skin necrosis
Human
Full thickness
Burn
Pricking pain
Thermal injury
Human
Human
Human
Rat, mouse, dog, cat
(spinal cord, brain)
Rat (whole body)
Fetal abnormalities
Behavioral disruption
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Species/organ/tissue
Threshold ( ºC
Exposure duration
and SAR (W/kg))
> 42 ºC
Tt
Varies
? 40.5 ºC
Tt
42-43 ºC
Tt
43 ºC
10-12 h
55-50 ºC
3-10 s
45 ºC
100 min
60 ºC
5s
45 ºC
3-10 s
43 - 44 ºC
1 to 80 min
2 – 2.5 ºC increase
Tens of minutes up to 1 h
or so
40-60 min
1 ºC increase, 4
W/kg
Cataract
Rat (whole-body)
Monkey (whole-body)
Rabbit (eye)
>41 ºC (>150
W/kg)
> 30 min
Convulsions
Mouse
??
Increase in BBB
permeability
Rat
Tre = 44 ºC
> 40 ºC brain
temperature (> 4
W/kg WBA SAR)
EMF update LTA 2006 / SL
4h
Portability requires a
mechanism
•
> 400 studies cover wide range of frequencies and modulations
Do not support the “non-thermal hypothesis”
1) Biophysical analyses and reviews do not support that non-thermal
interactions are plausible at mobile telephony frequencies
2) Examination of biological effects literature does not provide a
consistent body of data supporting theoretical postulates on “nonthermal” mechanisms
 Large mobile-telephony-health research database portable to new
technologies
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Biophysical mechanisms – current views
Although RF energy can affect bulk matter, inspection of
many mechanisms has showed that
• By very large factors, energy cannot be sufficiently concentrated to
the cellular and molecular dimensions needed to change chemical
structure or binding
• Damping by water is a fundamental obstacle
• Signals far below noise levels have no effect
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Conclusions
• Cellular metabolism can be affected by relatively small (order of
1 K) temperature changes
• Specialized sensitive receptors/organs respond to small
temperature differences (<0.1 K)
• Temperature differences >0.1 K) between points separated by
subcellular dimensions are not possible due to thermal diffusion
and are not plausible mechanisms for causing microwave
biological effects.
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Exposure from mobile phone GSM
handset
• SAR non-uniform (local SAR value
usually below 1 W/kg in 10 g tissue
mass)
• Temperature more uniform
• Equilibrium temperature increase is
<0.2 °C at maximum
van Leeuwen GMJ et al. Phys. Med. Biol. 44 (1999) 2367.
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Van Leeuwen et al 1999: T in head (10 g
average mass, antenna average emitted power
of 0.25 W)
SAR (W/kg)
Peak 10g cube 10g any
4.0
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0.91
1.66
SAR distribution in various head models
A
B
C
D
2450
1800
900
A: Female B: Male C: 3-y D: 7-y
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Base stations – exposures and
health
Main lobe
Side lobe
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©NOKIA emftraining2002v4.ppt 8/11/2002 P.Harrison
EMF update LTA 2006 / SL
Back lobe
Exposures from base station
• Fields are hundreds to thousands
of times weaker than near handset
• SAR many thousand to millions
times weaker than near handset
•
Population base station exposures in
only a small fraction of ICNIRP power
density limit
•Range 0.00007 mW/m2 - 3 mW/m2
•ICNIRP limit 4,5 W/m2 at 900 MHz)
• Reflections make fields nonuniform in buildings and some
outdoor environments
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Population base station exposures
in Europe (ICNIRP limit 4,5 W/m2 at 900
MHz)
Power density (mW/m2)
All
Home
Urban
Town
Rural
mediana
0.04
0.005
0.5
0.033
0.0006
meana
0.5
0.0055
0.8
0.034
0.0016
rangea
0.00007-3
rangeb
medianc
0.000380.31
0.2
a) 30 – 2000 MHz, Göteborg and various sites, Sweden (Uddmar T, Thesis, Chalmers U., 1999)
b) GSM900 GSM 1800 downlinks at 9 residential locations, Mainz (Schüz & Mann, J Expos Analysis & Env
Epi 10:600, 2000)
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c) GSM900, GSM1800 downlinks only, 272 locations, Germany (Haumann et al., 2nd Int’l Workshop,
Rhodes, 2002 p 327)
EMF update LTA 2006 / SL
M. Swicord, WHO conference, Bangkok,
01/2004
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Flux of electromagnetic energy
EMF source
Approximate energy
flux (watts/square
meter)
Sunlight at the earth's surface at noon
1350 W/m2
Infrared heat radiation from a living person
20 W/m2
Mobile base station
70 W/m2 – 3 mW/m2 a)
Microwave emission from a living person
3 mW/m2
ICNIRP limit 4.5 W/m2 at 900 MHz
a) 30 – 2000 MHz, Göteborg and various sites, Sweden
(Uddmar T, Thesis, Chalmers U., 1999)
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Who Sets RF Safety
Standards?
ICNIRP
guidelines developed by a relatively small committee of
appointed experts, no industry members
closed meetings
Endorsed by WHO
• ICES
• large committee open to anyone with a material interest
• open consensus process
• National agencies and standards bodies
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IEEE/ICNIRP: WHOLE-BODY LIMITS
5
SAR, W/kg
4
3
10X Safety
Margin
50X Safety
Margin
2
0.4 W/kg
1
0.08 W/kg
0
Threshold for
Adverse Effect
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Occupational
Limit
General Public
Limit
ICNIRP basic restrictions
Basic SAR Restrictions (W/kg)
Standard
Condition
Frequency
ICNIRP
(1998)
Occupational
100 kHz-10 GHz
0.4
10 W/kg
20 (10g)
General
population
100 kHz-10 GHz
0.08
2 W/kg (applied
for mobile phones)
4 (10g)
ICNIRP
(1998)
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Whole
Body
Local SAR (head
and trunk)
Local SAR (limbs)
“Science journalism”…
Indian Business Insight (9 Sept 2003) claims a study has shown
that the use of mobile phones might lead to long-time health hazards.
The article says the use of mobile phone can lead to brain cancer,
brain tumour, destruction of brain cells and might lead to early
Alzheimer's disease. The radiation is likely to affect the brain's blood
brain barrier, creating problems with memory and processing functions
while disturbing sleep patterns. Other consequences of using mobile
phones include learning, concentration and behavioural disorders,
extreme fluctuation in blood pressure, heart rhythm disorders, heart attack
and strokes, brain degenerative diseases, epilepsy and leukaemia among
others.
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Peer-reviewed papers describing
biological and health effects of RF fields
Studies are listed on the WHO web site under "citation listings": http://www.who.int/peh-emf/research/database/en/
A study represents a single paper published in a peer reviewed journal
(All studies are listed on the WHO web site: http://www.who.int/peh-emf/research/database/en/)
Research study type
Ongoing1
Reported but
not published1
Published2
Epidemiology
39
7
215
Human studies
61
18
139
Animal studies (incl. bioassays)
54
33
717
Cellular studies
59
32
376
Totals
213
90
1447
1. From project listings, 2. From Citation listings
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Mobile telephony relevant projects in the
WHO database
Research Study type
Ongoing
Completed
Total
• Cancer relevant or related
Epidemiology
Animal studies
Cellular studies
25
22
34
20
49
59
45
71
93
Total cancer studies
81
128
209
5
39
13
9
10
59
45
15
15
98
58
24
76
157
129
257
195
414
• Non-cancer studies
Epidemiology
Human studies
Animal studies
Cellular studies
Total non-cancer studies
Totals
All studies are listed on the WHO web site: http://www-nt.who.int/peh-emf/database.htm
A project may include one or more published papers and/or ongoing follow-on work
Mobile phone prevalence and brain tumor
incidence: Finland
110
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
1980
31
1982 1984 1986
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1988 1990
1992 1994 1996
1998 2000
2002
Malignant brain tumors
3.00
2.50
2.00
1.50
1.00
0.50
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Problems with epidemiology
Cancer starts
Buy a
mobile phone
diagnosed
developing
1985
1995
Epidemiological study
Cancer
on mobile phone use & cancer
2005
Research conclusion: the mobile phone use is correlated with cancer
Correlation does not mean causation!!!
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2006
Human laboratory studies
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Human laboratory studies
• Cognitive function and memory
• Improved or hindered cognitive function and memory in humans
under mobile phone exposure
• Reported changes very small in magnitude
• Non-replicated findings
• EEG, sleep disturbances and event-related potentials
• Both EEG and sleep findings inconsistent and not replicated
• Replication attempts ongoing
• Headache and fatigue
• correlations between headache and RF exposure derived data
from subjects through questionnaires.
• Problems with bias not clearly addressed in these studies
• Lack of relevant exposure assessment disallows any meaningful
dose-response to substantiate the reported effects
• Two controlled laboratory provocation studies examining the
effects of RF exposure on headaches have reported no effect
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Human laboratory studies
• Hypersensitivity
• Well-performed laboratory studies with controlled provocation in
normal and self-claimed hypersensitive subjects have reported no
association between the self-reported hypersensitivity and RF
exposure from mobile phones
• Blood pressure & heart rate
• Effect not confirmed by well-conducted laboratory studies
• Animal studies that have reported effects of RF exposure on BP
and HR, have all been at clearly thermal exposure levels
• Conclusions: No consistent evidence exists to indicate an adverse
effect of low-level RF exposure on the nervous system. However,
because of the variety of different effects reported by some
investigators and the many contradictory reports, research in this
area continues.
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Mobile phones and children
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WHO - children
• With more and more research data available, it has become
increasingly unlikely that exposure to electromagnetic fields
constitutes a serious health hazard, nevertheless, some uncertainty
remains.
• Present scientific information does not indicate the need for any
special precautions for use of mobile phones. If individuals are
concerned, they might choose to limit their own or their children's' RF
exposure by limiting the length of calls, or using "hands-free" devices
to keep mobile phones away from the head and body.
• There have been suggestions that exposure of young children to
electromagnetic fields (EMF) may be detrimental to their health,
especially during the development and maturation of the central
nervous system, immune system and other critical
organs.(Introduction “WHO Workshop sensitivity of Children to EMF
Exposure 9 June 2004 - 10 June 2004 Istanbul, Turkey”)
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FDA/USA – children – mobile phones
• "The scientific evidence does not show a danger to users of wireless phones,
including children and teenagers. If you want to take steps to lower exposure
to radiofrequency energy (RF), the measures described above would apply to
children and teenagers using wireless phones. Reducing the time of wireless
phone use and increasing the distance between the user and the RF source
will reduce RF exposure”.
• “Some groups sponsored by other national governments have advised that
children be discouraged from using wireless phones at all. For example, the
government in the United Kingdom distributed leaflets containing such a
recommendation in December 2000. They noted that no evidence exists that
using a wireless phone causes brain tumors or other ill effects. Their
recommendation to limit wireless phone use by children was strictly
precautionary; it was not based on scientific evidence that any health hazard
exists”.
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Children – mobile phones – health
Facts – what is science telling us?
• Exposure to mobile phones
RF energy absorption does not differ
significantly between adult and child heads
• Health effects
No established scientific evidence that
developing organisms, such as children, would
be more sensitive to RF fields
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Scientific expert group reviews
A review of the extensive literature on RF biological effects, consisting of well
over 1300 primary peer reviewed publications published as early as 1950,
reveals no adverse health effects that are not thermally related. This
conclusion is consistent with those reached by other scientific expert groups
including the:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
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Australian Government, Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency,
Committee on Electromagnetic Energy Public Health Issues
European Commission Expert Group
European Committee on Toxicology, Eco-toxicology and the Environment (CSTEE)
France’s Commission for Consumer Safety (the French Expert Report) (‘Zmirou report’ to
the French Health General Directorate)
Health Council of the Netherlands
Hong Kong - Office of the Telecommunications Authority
International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection
Japanese Ministry of Post and Telecommunications
New Zealand Ministry of Health and Ministry of Environment
Royal Society of Canada Expert Panel
Singapore Health Sciences Authority
Swedish State Radiation Protection Authority
U.K. Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones
U.K. National Radiological Protection Board U.S. Food and Drug Administration
World Health Organization
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WHO statement 2004
Conclusions from scientific research
“In the area of biological effects and medical applications of non-ionizing
radiation approximately 25,000 articles have been published over the past
30 years. Despite the feeling of some people that more research needs to
be done, scientific knowledge in this area is now more extensive than for
most chemicals. Based on a recent in-depth review of the scientific
literature, the WHO concluded that current evidence does not confirm
the existence of any health consequences from exposure to low level
electromagnetic fields. However, some gaps in knowledge about
biological effects exist and need further research”..
http://www.who.int/peh-emf/about/WhatisEMF/en/index1.html
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WHO health risk assessment of EMF 0300 GHz
• Methodology
• Evaluation of research data
• Based on peer-reviewed published papers
• Use weight-of-evidence approach i.e. consider relevant, wellestablished, replicated results and coherence of the data
• Replication vs. confirmation studies
• IARC cancer review Spring 2007
• WHO assessment of RF energy 2007-2008
• Environmental health criteria (EHC) document covering 0-300
Ghz
• Continuation of WHO EMF project?
• ICNIRP exposure standard revision started (< 100 KHz) 
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Research Conclusions
• The weight of evidence suggests that RF energy does
not induce cancers or promote cancer development
• No consistent evidence exists to indicate an adverse
effect of low-level RF (below safety guidelines) exposure
on the nervous system.
• However, because of the variety of different effects
reported by some investigators and the many
contradictory reports, research in this area continues.
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Conclusions
• Increased use of wireless communication technology has triggered
extensive media debates and also caused public concerns often
based on misleading information by poorly conducted studies
• Biological and potential health effects of RF energy have been
studied for about 60 years
• WHO database contains about 1500 peer-reviewed scientific papers
describing biological and health effects of RF energy
• ICNIRP and IEEE standards setting processes are based on a
rigorous review of scientific literature
• No adverse health effects have been observed below the
internationally accepted exposure limits (ICNIRP and IEEE)
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