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Frequency (RF) energy, 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.
11. What about wireless phone
interference with medical
equipment?
Radio Frequency (RF) energy from
wireless phones can interact with
some electronic devices. For this
reason, the FDA helped develop a
detailed test method to measure
Electro Magnetic Interference
(EMI) of implanted cardiac
pacemakers and defibrillators from
wireless telephones. This test
method is now part of a standard
sponsored by the Association for
the Advancement of Medical
Instrumentation (AAMI). The final
draft, a joint effort by the FDA,
medical device manufacturers, and
many other groups, was completed
in late 2000. This standard will allow
manufacturers to ensure that
cardiac pacemakers and
defibrillators are safe from wireless
phone EMI.
The FDA has tested hearing aids for
interference from handheld
wireless phones and helped
develop a voluntary standard
sponsored by the Institute of
Electrical and Electronic Engineers
(IEEE). This standard specifies test
methods and performance
requirements for hearing aids and
wireless phones so that no
interference occurs when a person
uses a “compatible” phone and a
“compatible” hearing aid at the
same time. This standard was
approved by the IEEE in 2000.
The FDA continues to monitor the
use of wireless phones for possible
interactions with other medical
devices. Should harmful