March 31, 2004... The U.K. National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) is recommending the adoption of the ICNIRP limits for human exposures to EMFs in the 0-300 GHz frequency range. In its Advice, issued on March 31, the NRPB cites its “review of the science, the need to adopt a cautious approach and recognition of the benefits of international harmonization” as the rationale for tightening the U.K. standards, which are among the least restrictive in the world. The board stresses that it may be necessary to adopt “further precautionary measures” for the exposure of children to power-frequency magnetic fields. This view represents the latest evolutionary step in the NRPB’s and its scientific advisors’ outlook on EMF leukemia risks. In a report issued three years ago, a panel chaired by Sir Richard Doll acknowledged a possible EMF–cancer link among children but found that it was still very weak (see MWN, M/A01). This in itself marked a break from previous statements which were openly skeptical of such an association. Sir William Stewart, the NRPB chairman, notes that this new recommendation reflects “the need for a precautionary approach when there are genuine uncertainties in our knowledge, ” according to the NRPB press release. Alastair McKinlay, who leads the NRPB’s work on non-ionizing radiation, recently stepped down as the chairman of ICNIRP. Rick Saunders, one of the authors of the new NRPB review and advice, joined the WHO EMF project two weeks ago (see news item below). Last year, the WHO, after initially invoking a precautionary approach to EMF health risks, later backed away from such policies (see MWN, M/A03 and M/J03). Mike Repacholi, the head of the EMF project in Geneva, is instead developing a comprehensive framework for all types of environmental risks. This new framework has not yet been released. NRPB’s detailed review of the scientific evidence, like its advice, is available at no charge on its Web site.

 

March 30, 2004... A prospective epidemiological study —the first of its kind— has failed to find an association between a woman’s melatonin level and her risk of developing breast cancer. Ruth Travis and coworkers at the University of Oxford in the U.K. report in the March 17 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute that, while they cannot rule out a “moderate” association, their results are a setback for the hypothesis that “endogenous melatonin concentration is a major factor in breast cancer etiology. ”

 

March 10, 2004... A U.K. panel has thrown some cold water on the idea that charged particles (ions) created by power lines could increase cancer rates among those living nearby. In a report issued on March 10, the advisory group on non-ionizing radiation (AGNIR) to the National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) concludes that “it seems unlikely that corona ions would have more than a small effect on the long-term health risks associated with particulate air pollution.” While the panel pointed to some research that might reduce some of the remaining uncertainty, it rejected the need for an epidemiological study. Prof. Denis Henshaw of Bristol University, the main proponent of the corona ion hypothesis, is standing firm. “My view is that power lines should not be erected near populated areas,” he argues in a statement issued in response to the AGNIR report. Henshaw notes that his latest work shows that these ions can generate extremely small particles —nanoaerosols— which are potentially quite toxic. The NRPB’s press release details how to order the new AGNIR report. For more on Henshaw’s hypothesis, see MWN, M/A96, N/D99 and M/A02.

 

March 10, 2004... Sir William Stewart, the chairman of the U.K. Health Protection Agency as well as the chairman of the NRPB, will give the opening address at the International Scientific Conference on Childhood Leukemia. The meeting, to be held in London, September 6-10, will examine all the possible risk factors including genetics, ionizing radiation, EMFs, chemicals and viruses. Those signing up before June 30 will get close to a 20% discount on the registration fee.

 

March 10, 2004... Prof. Kwan-Hoong Ng of the University of Malay in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, attempts to debunk the idea that there are any health risks associated with mobile phones in a new 30-page pamphlet. Radiation, Mobile Phones, Base Stations and Your Health reassures that there are no established nonthermal effects resulting from exposure to RF radiation and warns that science can never “ prove that something is absolutely safe and harmless.” Ng does note, however, that, “To date, there is inconclusive scientific evidence to prove that the mobile phone system can lead to cancer or a variety of other health effects, includign headaches, dizziness, memory loss or birth defects.”

 

March 3, 2004... On March 15, Richard Saunders, head of the non-ionizing radiation effects group at the U.K.’s National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB), will join the WHO’s EMF project in Geneva for an 11-month sabbatical. Saunders, who received his doctorate in zoology and comparative physiology in 1973, has spent most of the last 30 years at the NRPB. He is a member of ICNIRP’s standing committee on biology. Meanwhile, Mike Repacholi, who runs the EMF project, has yet to hire a full-time replacement for Leeka Kheifets, who returned to California last year after a two-year stint in Geneva. Kheifets continues to serve as a consultant to the project. Repacholi was recently spotted in the U.S. seeking financial support for his work on EMFs. No word yet on how well he did.



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