No evidence cellphone sites pose health risk

The latest science has failed to find evidence electromagnetic radiation from cellsites has any adverse effect on people, says a French expert, but a question-mark still hangs over heavy and long-term phone use.

Bernard Veyret is a member of the International Commission for Non-Ionising Radiation Protection, a group affiliated with the World Health Organisation which sets the international guidelines on exposure limits.

At an online conference hosted by Australia's Science Media Centre, Dr Veyret said tests on cells, animals and statistical studies of human populations pointed to an ''absence of effect'' from mobile base stations and some uncertainty about mobile phones themselves.

Results from a huge study  Interphone  involving 13 countries including New Zealand will be published later this year. So far the data suggests no increased risk of health problems among most people who had used mobile phones for 10 years.

''I think this will be the main message.''

But Interphone may find a ''slight increase'' in the risk of brain tumours among heavy users of mobiles.

Dr Veyret said  mobile phone use  was rising exponentially but the incidence of brain tumours was not changing, he says.