Health : Health Buzz: Cell Phones Could Raise Brain Cancer Risk |
| Health Buzz: Cell Phones Could Raise Brain Cancer Risk Posted: 31 May 2011 09:00 PM PDT Cell Phones May Cause Brain Cancer, Health Agency Says Cell phones could cause brain cancer, the World Health Organization warned Tuesday. A panel of 31 international experts analyzed dozens of studies on cell phone safety, and declared that the handheld devices are "possible carcinogens"—along with coffee, styrofoam cups, gasoline exhaust, and common medications like Valium. The WHO's International Agency for Research on Cancer noted a possible connection between cell phones and two types of brain tumors: gliomas and acoustic neuromas. Cell phones emit radio waves, or low-frequency radiation, that could prove harmful after long-term, frequent use, the experts said. However, research on health hazards posed by the phones has generated conflicting results; in February, British researchers said cell phones do not raise the risk of brain cancer. "When we as consumers hear 'possibly carcinogenic,' we freak," Otis Brawley, chief medical officer at the American Cancer Society, told USA Today. "But the data is not at all certain, and needs further study. There are probably far more people killed in car accidents caused by cell phones than from brain tumors caused by cell phones." What Causes Cancer? 7 Strange Cancer Claims Explained Bras, deodorant, and mouthwash—just a few of the everyday products that have been linked to cancer at some point during the past several decades. Preposterous? Not at the time, and new suspects have been added to the list. Here's the real story behind a roll call of ordinary household items that have come under scrutiny: Artificial Sweeteners. The link: Calorie watchers scored a win when diet sodas were introduced in the early 1950s. Then lab studies suggested that the sweetener cyclamate caused bladder cancer in rats, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned its use. Then saccharin, the replacement of choice, was also shown to cause tumors in rats. Although saccharin was never banned, all products containing the sweetener were required to carry a cancer warning on their packaging. The reality: No evidence has since emerged that either cyclamate, which is used in other countries, or saccharin causes cancer in humans, according to the National Cancer Institute. Although cyclamate is still banned, in 2000 saccharin was taken off the government's list of possible carcinogens and saccharin products shed the warning label. The sweetener aspartame has come under suspicion, but scientists have found no increased risk of cancer in humans. [Read more: What Causes Cancer? 7 Strange Cancer Claims Explained.]
Cancer Prevention: Rethink Your Diet as Well as Your Smoking If everyone were to quit smoking today, nearly 450,000 fewer Americans would die annually from smoking-related diseases. Yet even with all the smoking bans across the country, one in five Americans still lights up regularly—a rate that's plateaued since 2005 after four decades of decline, according to a report issued last year by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While the smoking-lung cancer connection is an old story, every week, it seems, another headline tells you what you should or shouldn't eat to avert the "big C". Eat a colorful array of fruits and vegetables to ward off lung cancer, says one recent study; avoid soft drinks if you don't want to die of pancreatic cancer, warns another. Wine is good for your heart, but may increase your risk of breast cancer, others suggest. And who wouldn't be willing to give up the Diet Coke or chardonnay to sidestep the disease we fear most? It you took action based on research published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, you might find yourself forgoing hamburgers and chicken wings and embracing soy burgers, tofu, and peanut butter instead. That study found that an Atkins-style diet that emphasized vegetable protein over animal protein lowered the risk of cancer. But all things considered, how much do dietary changes really matter in terms of cancer prevention? "Right after smoking, diet ranks right up there as the No. 2 modifiable risk factor," says Demetrius Albanes, a senior investigator and medical epidemiologist at the National Cancer Institute. "Twenty-five percent of cancers can be related back to eating practices." Does that mean we really need to avoid soft drinks if we don't want to get pancreatic cancer, as was suggested by a study in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention? "I don't think we can say that," Albanes says. "That particular study from Singapore didn't control very well for smoking, which is an important risk factor for pancreatic cancer." In other words, it could be that those who down daily six-packs of Fanta are also more likely to light up. [Read more: Cancer Prevention: Rethink Your Diet as Well as Your Smoking.]
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