|
31 January 2005 - Magnetic Bead Could Stop
Radiation in Mobile Phones
Navigation
Professor Lawrie Challis, Chairman of the Mobile
Telecommunications and Health Research Programme, has told the BBC of a bead
device, normally used for stopping interference in computers, if attached to the
wire of hands-free mobile phones, could stop harming radio waves traveling up
the wire to the head.
He has urged the mobile phone industry to use them "as
standard", although there is, as yet, no evidence of mobile phone rays being
harmful.
The ferrite bead in question is often only 1cm in diameter and
whilst it is said that hands-free kits reduce emissions of radiation to the
head, "unintentional" emissions travelling outside the wires, can be halted by
using the simple function of attaching a ferrite bead to the wire.
Professor Challis, who also presided on the Stewart Committee
which looked at the safety of mobile phones in the year 2000 said:
"There is no evidence yet that mobile phones are harmful to
health but people have not been using them long enough for us to be sure.
"Using a ferrite bead effectively reduces emissions to the
head to zero but as yet manufacturers do not put them on hands-free kits.
I am not sure why, but I wish they would. They could use it as a marketing
technique, you would think they would like to promote it."
In agreement with Professor Challis, Dr. Stuart Porter of the
department of electronics at the University of York and has looked at the use of
ferrite beads said:
"Hands-free kits effectively have two currents, an
intentional one that stays within the wires and an unintentional one on the
outside.
"It is the unintentional one the beads stop. They work by
blocking the current, a bit like a block in a water pipe."
However, Mr. Michael Milligan, General Secretary of the Mobile
Manufacturers Forum rejected Professor Challis's call for the beads to be used
on hands-free kits and said:
"I agree they can have an impact. But the bigger issue is
that mobile phones are tested to be compliant with standards and have been
passed safe."
Article by Alexandra Johnston
|
