Health risks 5G: what is the evidence?

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The 5G mobile network has been activated in some cities in the United Kingdom and has led to questions about whether the new technology poses health risks.

So what are the concerns, and is there evidence to back them up?

How is 5G different?

As with previous cellular technologies, 5G networks rely on signals carried by radio waves – part of the electromagnetic spectrum – transmitted between an antenna or mast and your phone.

We are constantly surrounded by electromagnetic radiation – television and radio signals, as well as a range of technologies, including mobile phones, and natural sources such as sunlight.

The 5G uses higher frequency waves than previous mobile networks, allowing more devices to access the Internet at the same time and at a higher speed.

These waves traveling shorter distances through urban spaces, 5G networks therefore require more transmitter masts than previous technologies, positioned closer to the ground.

Legend

South Korea now has a national 5G network

What are the concerns?

The electromagnetic radiation used by all mobile phone technologies has led some people to fear increased health risks, including the development of certain types of cancer.

In 2014, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that "no adverse health effects have been established as resulting from the use of the mobile phone".

However, WHO, in collaboration with the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), has classified all radioactive radiation (including mobile signals) as "potentially carcinogenic".

It has been classified in this category because "there is evidence indicating that cancer exposure may be carcinogenic in humans".

The consumption of pickled vegetables and the use of talc are classified as having the same level of risk.

Alcoholic beverages and processed meat are classified as higher risk.

A toxicology report published in 2018 by the US Department of Health, and highlighted by those who fear for its safety, revealed that male rats exposed to high doses of radio-radiation were developing a type of cancerous tumor in the heart .

For this study, whole body rats were exposed to mobile phone radiation nine hours a day for two years from birth.

No cancer link was found in female rats or mice studied. Radiation-exposed rats were also found to live longer than those in the control group.

An experienced scientist in the study said that "the exposures used in the studies can not be directly compared to the exposure experienced by humans during the use of a cell phone ", even for heavy users.

Dr. Frank De Vocht, who helps the government advise the government on the safety of mobile phones, says "although some research suggests a statistical possibility of increased cancer risk for heavy users, evidence to date of a cause-and-effect relationship are not convincing enough to suggest the need for a precautionary measure. "

However, a group of scientists and doctors have written to the EU to call for a halt to the deployment of 5G.

Radio waves are non-ionizing

The radio-wave band – used for mobile phone networks – is non-ionizing ", which means that it lacks enough energy to separate DNA and cause cell damage." says David Robert Grimes, a physicist and cancer researcher.

Higher in the electromagnetic spectrum, far beyond the frequencies used by mobile phones, prolonged exposure to obvious health risks.

The ultraviolet rays of the sun belong to this harmful category and can lead to skin cancer.

There are strict indicative limits for exposure to even higher energy radiation levels, such as medical X-rays and gamma rays, both of which can have adverse effects on the human body.

"People are naturally worried about whether they could increase their risk of cancer, but it's crucial to note that radio waves are much less energetic than even the visible light we feel every day," says Dr. Grimes.

"There is no reliable evidence," he says, "that mobile phones or wireless networks have caused us health problems."

Should we worry about 5G transmitter masts?

5G technology requires a lot of new base stations. These are the masts that transmit and receive signals from mobile phones.

But most importantly, as there are more transmitters, each of them can operate at lower power levels than the previous 4G technology, which means that the level of radiation exposure emitted by 5G antennas will be weaker.

The UK Government Mobile Base Station Guidelines indicate that radio frequency fields in places normally accessible to the public are often below indicative levels.

What about the dangers of heating?

Part of the 5G spectrum allowed by the international guidelines is in the microwave band.

Microwaves generate heat in the objects through which they pass.

However, at the levels used for 5G (and previous mobile technologies), the heating effects are not harmful, says Professor Rodney Croft, advisor to the International Commission on Protection against Non-ionizing Radiation (ICNIRP).

"The maximum radio frequency level at which a person in the community could be exposed from the 5G (or any other signal in areas of the community in general) is so low that no rise in temperature will occur. has been observed so far. "

Exposure Limits

The UK government said: "Although a slight increase in overall radio wave exposure is possible when 5G is added to the existing network, the overall exposure is expected to remain low."

The frequency range of the introduced 5G signals lies in the non-ionizing band of the electromagnetic spectrum and is well below those considered harmful by the ICNIRP.

"The exposure that 5G will produce has been thoroughly investigated by ICNIRP, the restrictions being well below the lowest level of 5G-related radio frequency, which has been shown to cause harm," explains Professor Croft.

According to the WHO, exposures at an electromagnetic frequency below the limits recommended in the ICNIRP guidelines do not appear to have any known health consequences.

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