Cordless Phones: Even More Dangerous Than Cell Phones?

Posted by Lloyd on July 14, 2010 under Cell phone radiation danger | 4 Comments to Read

Just when you thought you could solve the problem of cell phone radiation by switching back to your good old cordless landline phone, well think again. Studies show that cordless phones emit radiation just the same as cell phones.

I believe cordless phone radiation can be even more dangerous than cell phone radiation.

Most cordless phones use DECT (Digital European Cordless Telephone) technology. So the phone and the base of the phone, emit pulsed microwave radiation.

Cancer Link With Cordless Phone Radiation

Research from Swedish scientists concludes that cordless phones raise the risk of developing cancer. After evaluating malignant brain tumor patients’ usage of cell phones vs. their usage of cordless phones, they found the cancer risk was multiplied for those who used DECT cordless phones and combining the two made the risk even higher.

Compounding the problem, the levels of radiation from your DECT cordless phone base may be more significant than radiation levels found near cell phone towers. Most DECT cordless phones emit radiation from the handset, as well as the base, at full power even when the phone isn’t in use.

Watch my short video on cordless phone radiation to better understand what I am talking about.

So the radiation from the DECT cordless handset and/or charger sends emissions throughout your entire house–all the time.

Cell Phone Dangers Bring Cordless Phone Radiation Into The Limelight

Way back when we were using tin cans attached to a long string to communicate, we have always loved the idea of being able to talk to one another across distances.   In the latter part of the 19^th century we graduated to the telephone and ever since then have been refining and reinventing the “talking telegraph”.

Anyone older than forty remembers when all telephones had a cord attached to them, thus grounding them to the incoming telephone line–it was a cumbersome but effective arrangement.  You probably remember using extra-long phone lines to connect your phone to the jack so you could roam from room to room. Even that was pretty liberating.

Necessity being the mother of invention, when the cordless phone came into being in the 1980s there was no going back.  They quickly became the household norm.

In a matter of a very few years we went from relatively low power, low frequency analog cordless phones to high power, higher frequency (some of the new phones operate at 5.8 Gigahertz) pulsed radiation DECT models. Because telephone advances happened faster than we could make connections between their radiation levels and cancer risk, cordless phones  weren’t viewed as a health problem until cellular phone technology brought the risk of brain cancer to light.

Is Cordless Phone Radiation Worse Than Cell Phone Radiation?

Yes, it possibly is. With EMF exposure, proximity to the source and length of exposure are two very important factors. Many people go to bed every night with their head just a few inches from a DECT cordless phone base thereby exposing themselves to significant levels of cordless phone radiation, just at the time of day when their body is the most vulnerable.

In terms of radiation exposure neither DECT cordless phones nor cell phones are particularly good for you, and certainly not in combination. Perhaps it would be wisest to follow the advice of respected Harley Street physician Dr. David Dowson, he says:  ”Having a cordless phone is like having a mobile mast in your house. I’d recommend anyone who has one to switch to a plug-in phone.”

Are Low Radiation Eco Cordless Phones The Solution To Cordless Phone Radiation?

If you really can’t live without your cordless phone then better to get a low EMF or eco- DECT cordless model. Low EMF DECT cordless phones like the Siemens Gigaset S795 Cordless Phone still emit radiation but they have 2 advantages:

1. The Eco mode function means the nearer the handset to the base the less radiation is emitted, so the less you are exposed

2. The base does not emit radiation when the phone is on the standby

I recently purchased a Siemens Gigaset cordless phone and I can confirm that they do not emit radiation when on standby. BUT this function does need configuring. Thats to say the model that I recieved when I took it out of the box it was operating like a normal DECT cordless phone and emitting EMFs, I was able to confirm this by using my radio frequency (RF) meter.

Even though that long telephone wire is a cumbersome mess,  my advice is to play safe, being tethered to your land line phone jack is a small price to pay for long term improved health and vitality.

If you are hesitating replacing your cordless DECT phone with a corded phone, don’t hesitate any longer.  A low EMF cordless phone can provide a half-way house solution by removing stand-by mode EMF exposures, but when you actually speak on the phone the EMF exposures are just the same as on a regular model  (another alternative is to try and find an old analog cordless phone – considered much safer – works at a lower frequency – the EMFs are not pulsed).

Do yourself a favor, deal with your cordless phone radiation today.