Several ACRBR memebers presented their latest research at the ENA EMF Scientific Workshop in Melbourne on 17 November. Thank you to all those who came along to support the workshop

View the program or presentation abstracts and slides from this event, or visit the ENA website .

The ACRBR presented its latest research at the 34th Australasian Radiation Protection Society (ARPS) conference in Fremantle on Tuesday the 27th of October. Thank you to all those who came along to support the workshop.

You can find the program for this event here, and visit the ARPS website here.

In March this year Khurana et al published a literature review that investigated possible associations of long term mobile phone use and brain tumours (Khurana et al., Surgical Neurology, March 26, 2009). The paper attracted considerable media interest here in Australia, where the issue was broadcast on such programs as Channel 9’s “60 Minutes”, and ABC’s “Lateline”. Given the wide publicity, it is possible that that the use of this paper in the media may have misled audiences about this issue, thus the ACRBR has put together these brief comments on the paper. Read more

With the expanded use of radiofrequency (RF) communication technologies, questions have been raised concerning the RF levels that the community is exposed to. Such questions relate to the amount of electromagnetic energy (EME) that people are exposed to from devices such as mobile phones, cordless phones, Wi-Fi and cordless routers, both individually and due to their cumulative exposure. The present study tested such RF EME levels in 20 suburban homes in Melbourne, Australia, assessing EME levels from devices in isolation, as well as from their cumulative exposure. Overall, measurements were very low, with the highest level for a particular home less than 1% of national exposure limits. In terms of individual devices, the highest level was less than 10% of national exposure limits, and the effect of having all RF devices on simultaneously in a home (cumulative exposure) had little effect on the results. This study suggests that the use of RF devices in an average suburban home results in very low RF EME exposure (compared to national exposure limits), and that this conclusion is not affected by having numerous RF devices operating simultaneously. Read more

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), an arm of the World Health Organisation (WHO), with partners CREAL and UICC, has announced results from the INTERPHONE Study relating to gliomas and meningiomas have been submitted for publication. Manuscripts of further results from INTERPHONE, a multinational case-control study of the risk of brain tumours, acoustic neurinoma and parotid gland tumours in relation to RF exposure from mobile telephones, are under preparation.
Media release | More about INTERPHONE on IARC website

The Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR) has updated the previous opinion on ”Possible effects of Electromagnetic Fields (EMF), Radio Frequency Fields (RF)and Microwave Radiation on human health” by the Scientific Committee on Toxicity, Ecotoxicity and the Environment CSTEE) from 2001, with respect to whether or not exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF) is a cause of disease or other health effects. The opinion is primarily based on scientific articles, published in English language peer-reviewed scientific journals. Only studies that are considered relevant for the task are cited and commented upon in the opinion. Read the report | Read more about SCENIHR

In 2007 a group of interested individuals collated a series of views on the non-ionising radiation health debate. This was entitled the BioInitiative Report, a web document dated August 31, 2007. The BioInitiative Report presents a series of views that argue for a change in public exposure standards, but which are largely inconsistent with current scientific consensus. The ACRBR have received numerous queries about this report from the general public, and have provided this document to answer a few questions to clarify its perspective on the report. Read more

This study was based on a larger Danish Birth Cohort which recruited a total of 101,032 pregnancies between March 1996 and November 2002. The authors investigated associations between in utero (prenatal) and post natal exposures to mobile (cell) phones and behavioural problems in children...   Read more

In recent years there has been an expansion of the use of mobile communication devices in the community. This has generated considerable community debate about the possibility that the electromagnetic frequencies (EMF) that these devices generate may cause health problems. Also, some have argued that the cumulative dose of EMF in the community due to a number of devices being concurrently in operation may exceed the safety limits.  ...Read more

Two peer-reviewed scientific papers from 2005 and 2008 showing that electromagnetic fields (EMFs) from cell phones can cause DNA breakage are at the centre of a misconduct controversy at the Medical University of Vienna (MUV). Critics of the €3.2 million European Union-funded project called REFLEX had argued that the data looked too good to be real, and in May a university investigation agreed, concluding that data in both studies had been fabricated and that the papers should be retracted.   Read more | Read criticism and rebuttal of Science Magazine report

In a self published online report, Canberra based neurosurgeon, Dr Vini Khurana, claims that there is compelling evidence of a link between mobile phone use and brain tumours. The report purports to undertake a wide ranging review of the literature on the subject of mobile phone use and the incidence of brain tumours, mostly based on epidemiological studies undertaken in the last decade or so. The review was not published in a peer reviewed journal and presents no new research findings.  ...Read more

The Australian Centre for Radiofrequency Bioeffects Research (ACRBR) is committed to building a better understanding of the biological and health effects of human exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF).

To this end, the Centre implements a well-directed multidisciplinary research program drawing on the extensive skills, knowledge and experience of scientists from a number of Australian research institutions as well as overseas affiliates.

It takes a lead role in promoting collaboration between all Australian researchers exploring this topic and is training a new generation of scientists to become skilled researchers in this field. Importantly, it seeks to share its independent knowledge and expertise through public engagement and by actively contributing to the development of relevant safety standards and government policy.