Put Away the Aluminium Foil Suits and Dust Off That Cell Phone!

Ok fair warning: this is not a craft related post at all.  But as someone who really values reading, communication and self-education, I felt the need to share this (read: vent) with the folks who might stumble across this blog. 

So remember when, a few months ago, everyone was freaking out about cell phones causing brain cancer.  (Oh wait...I mean freaking out again...Am I the only one who remembers a similar "12 Monkeys"-esque hysteria a few years ago?...Oh, yeah, and a few years before that?...I digress).  Now this morning I read that the WHO takes back what they said, stating in a Fact Sheet issued in June "To date, no adverse health effects have been established as being caused by mobile phone use."  (http://www.thinkdigit.com/Mobiles-PDAs/New-study-says-mobile-phone-use-not_7185.html)

Great.  Fine.  Dandy!  Collective sigh of relief!  But now that this is all said and done (for a month or two) can we all promise that next time some headline like this starts trending on Twitter/Blogs/Facebook/Google+ etc...to take a moment and have a little perspective? 

There are things that are far more tangible risks to health than worrying if answering your phone is going to cause brain cancer. 

1. Do you smoke or hang out with people who smoke? (not just tobacco, mind you, all smoke contains carcinogens)
2. Do you wear your seatbelt? Does your car have side, head, and dash airbags? Do you drive the speed limit?
3. Do you floss your teeth? (flossing reduces bacteria growth that shows a causal relationship to heart disease)
4. Do you get enough exercise? Is your rest pulse rate below 70? Are you overweight?
5. Do you fly in airplanes? (exposure to cancer-causing radiation like ultraviolet rays and cosmic rays increases at high altitudes)
6. Do you eat fast food, drink alcohol, donuts?
7. Are you stressed? Do you get enough laughter? Do you meditate, do yoga, pray, wander around in a zone of bliss?
8. Do you talk on the phone or text while driving?
9. Do you live near a busy street? (air pollutants cause a host of ailments from  asthma to emphysema)
10. Do you eat barbequed food? (the charcoal from burnt flame-cooked food is a carcinogen)

Once you have all of these covered, you could consider wearing an aluminum foil suit to protect yourself from stray electromagnetic radiation. Such a suit would actually work, provided you make sure that it connects to the bottom of your shoe so you can stay grounded. It's about the only way to prevent exposure to either natural or unnatural electromagnetic radiation, though it does nothing to combat cosmic rays."  (I loved this list.  You can read Ransom Stephens's full article here: http://www.examiner.com/science-society-in-national/ten-health-risks-to-address-before-tossing-out-your-cell-phone)

In a refreshing "wake up and stop believing all the hype" moment Mr. Stephens shares what he found when he actually read the report: Cell phone electromagnetic radiation was classified as 2B (which, from what I understand means that they are possibly harmful.  Possibly.)  He smartly points out that coffee, talcum powder, lead and mustard gas also are classified 2B...soooo where do you draw the line?  That seems kind of far reaching classification to me! 

I have a feeling that snacking on lead paint chips and huffing mustard gas may be a bit more harmful than a cup of coffee and a chat on the phone...

In this day and age of reading no more than the headlines of the paper, or getting our news only from a few 140 character Tweets, let's be careful not to jump into blindly believing whatever happens to be the "trending worry of the day".  Remember when we used to actually read whole articles, and then went out and searched out more info and discussed our opinions with friends instead of just re-tweeting whatever link someone else posted or changing our Facebook status because someone else told us to?  Let's do that again.  I miss that. 

...I guess that says a lot about my tolerance (or complete lack thereof) for mass-hysteria filled messages and posts about how Facebook is going to start charging me a monthly fee unless I change my status, that the aspartame in my diet coke is going to make me blind, or that a serial killer is trying to coax me out of the house with a recording of a crying baby...


Disclaimer:  Please don't send me hate mail if you are an avid believer of the link between cells phones and cancer, if you hate the idea of sharing an opinion particularly if someone might disagree with the Twitter profile or email forward source that you revere, or if you are an entrepreneur/designer who recently started an Aluminium Foil suit company and are offended by my total lack of support for your product line.  In all honesty, I'm using this topic to make a point more about our collective need to take a step back, pay attention to how much time we spend actually forming our own opinions and educating ourselves as much as we can before virally spreading fear. 

I promise.  I think you look very fetching in the shiny suit.