The truth behind mobile phone radiation – ‘SAR’ and how it is affecting us in our daily life ?

These days, a day without a mobile phone is absolutely impossible!! It has become one of the necessities of our lives. We use the cell phones for communicating, sending messages, playing games, chatting, surfing on internet, listening to music, reading, etc. Cells phones nowadays are more like necessity than just a device.

We would have never thought about Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) while performing the above activities on a cell phone. SAR is a number that measures the rate at which the human body absorbs the energy when it is exposed to radio waves. It is used to quantify the energy absorbed by a mass of human tissue.

The effects of SAR on human bodies can take many forms – thermal, non-thermal, cognitive and behavioural. Cancer and disturbance in sleeping pattern are some of the consequences of SAR. We all must be aware of the serious health consequences of SAR.

As we are exposed to SAR frequently, we must take some precautions to ensure it does not have a serious impact on us.  Firstly, we should try and cut down the use of the mobiles. We should keep children from using mobiles as playthings; children should use them only for a restricted number of hours in a day.

See the image below, it is a report from survey conducted by French National Frequency Agency.

Instead of holding the mobile while talking, it is advisable to use a Bluetooth device to decrease the radiation. Keep your cell phone away from your body as much as possible. Use an external device while driving or using the cell phone in the car.

To lower the SAR impact, the government and the telecommunication companies can implement safety procedures. The telecommunication companies can try sharing the towers to lessen the environmental impact of SAR. Mobile tower installation should be avoided in residential areas, schools and hospitals. The government should only allow the sale of the mobiles with a lower SAR values.

These safeguards can help reduce the impact of SAR on our body. The effects of the SAR radiation can be serious and we can avoid them by following the simple above mentioned precautions.