Every day we hear reports of new scientific discoveries regarding what’s good for us, what’s bad for us and what could affect us well into the future. The reason these stories are given such credence in the media is an intrinsic trust the public holds for such scientific statements. In the August 29 issue of Science, however, accusations of fabricated data and blatantly false conclusions regarding the dangers of cell phones proved to be yet another instance in recent months of falsehoods unknowingly propagated in the public consciousness.
As of 2007, there were 3.3 billion cell phone users in the world with more than 156 million in the U.S. alone. In 2007, 798 million people worldwide used their cell phones for the internet and other mobile services. In 2006, this generated $31 billion. Texting services brought in another $100 billion in 2007. Revenue for music services equaled $9.3 billion with gaming generating $5 billion. In 2005, more than 125 million phones were discarded and replaced resulting in billions of dollars in new cell phones for consumers. This industry has grown so fast that, while in 1985 only 340,000 people used cell phones, over 140 million did in 2003. This growth continues as does the services offered and the necessity of this technology in everyone’s daily life. As a result, many have grown concerned that wireless electronic devices can cause irreparable harm to its users. Such groups have, in recent years, begun funding research into such a possibility. The cell phone industry, in response, has begun funding research of its own to prove the safety of its product.
Breaking DNA
Currently, two scientific papers have been published that link the electromagnetic fields (EMFs) of cell phones to DNA breakage. Since DNA controls everything from skin cell reproduction to the quality of one’s health, this was seen as a serious potential problem, especially for children. Submitted by the Medical University of Vienna’s Dr. Hugo Rüdiger, the data in these two papers were noted as being somewhat incredible. In fact, the “perfectness” of the data led to an investigation into the scientists, their research and how they obtained their data. In May 2008, the investigators concurred with the initial critics of the research and deemed the data unreliable. While it was agreed that the papers should be retracted, the data and fears that stemmed from them is already in the public sphere, causing confusion and worry.
Nothing can be quite this clear-cut however. Since the research technician’s initial mea culpa, the confession has been “re-thought.” The technician now denies any guilt, and the scientist in charge of the project has, as a result, refused to retract both papers. Instead, he has agreed to remove only one. While it would seem unwise to believe the new statement of innocence from a technician who originally claimed guilt, the lead scientist of the papers has stated the technician’s data was not at fault. Rather, it was his critics who should be blamed since they are, he alleges, being paid by the cell phone industry to smear the results of his research.
These two studies originally gave substantial weight to the claims of those calling for more strict regulations of the cell phone industry. Prior to these papers, studies had only shown EMFs to be responsible for less severe consequences such as what genes were turned on rather than outright severing of the DNA strands themselves. It was these papers that pushed that idea that cell phones could cause problems so serious that they could affect one’s DNA and, as a result, cause problems in the DNA of the user’s future children.
Suspicious Motives
The European Union gave €3.2 million to project REFLEX to study if EMFs had any effect on humans. Rüdiger’s funding for his two EMF papers came from this. Alexander Lerchl, a professor in Germany, is one of the most vocal of Rüdiger’s critics. Rüdiger is correct when he states that Lerchl receives money from the cell phone industry. Lerchl receives money from an organization that accepts funding from many different companies and industries, one being the cell phone industry. While this in itself does not negate Lerchl’s right to question potentially incorrect data, it does cause one to consider his motivations. This is especially true considering the amount of money at stake for the cell phone industry if their product is proven unsafe for adults and especially children and teens, who made up approximately 66% of U.S. users in 2005.
The truth of what really happened and why may be lost in the finger pointing and character assassination that seems to be an on-going phenomenon in this case. However, at the very least, the most current paper published in 2008 is being withdrawn, and this casts a shadow over all the papers produced by the Rüdiger lab, indeed, even the research results of scientists in general.
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