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For Your Safety
biological effects of RF of the type emitted
by wireless phones;
Design wireless phones in a way that
minimizes any RF exposure to the user that
is not necessary for device function; and
Cooperate in providing users of wireless
phones with the best possible information
on possible effects of wireless phone use
on human health.
The FDA belongs to an interagency working
group of the federal agencies that have
responsibility for different aspects of RF safety
to ensure coordinated efforts at the federal
level. The following agencies belong to this
working group:
National Institute for Occupational Safety
and Health
Environmental Protection Agency
Occupational Safety and Health
Administration
National Telecommunications and
Information Administration
The National Institutes of Health participates
in some interagency working group activities,
as well.
The FDA shares regulatory responsibilities
for wireless phones with the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC). All phones
that are sold in the United States must comply
with FCC safety guidelines that limit RF
exposure. The FCC relies on the FDA and other
health agencies for safety questions about
wireless phones.
The FCC also regulates the base stations that
the wireless phone networks rely upon. While
these base stations operate at higher power
than do the wireless phones themselves, the
RF exposures that people get from these base
stations are typically thousands of times lower
than those they can get from wireless phones.
Base stations are thus not the subject of the
safety questions discussed in this document.
3. What kinds of phones are the subject of
this update?
The term “wireless phone” refers here to
handheld wireless phones with built-in
antennas, often called “cell”, “mobile”,
or “PCS” phones. These types of wireless
phones can expose the user to measurable
Radio Frequency (RF) energy because of the
short distance between the phone and the
user’s head.
These RF exposures are limited by FCC safety
guidelines that were developed with the