Cell Phones the Newest Teen Addiction
A new report claims that cigarettes are slowly being replaced by an equally addictive obsession - the mobile phone.

Among some of the reports findings:

A rise in mobile phone use during the late 1990s coincided with a decline in smoking among 15-year-olds.

The prevalence of smoking fell to 23% in 1999 from 30% in 1996, the same year mobile phone use skyrocketed among 15- to 17-year-olds
"We hypothesise that the fall in youth smoking and the rise in ownership of mobile phones among adolescents are related," the authors write. They suggest that many teens cannot afford to sustain both habits and prefer the cutting-edge technology over the smoking.

They also note that the device is associated with many of the traits that attract teens to cigarettes:

a sense of individuality and sociability

a desire to rebel

the need to bond with friends, the team notes.
"The marketing of mobile phones is rooted in promoting self-image and identity, which resembles cigarette advertising," the researchers write.

"As ownership increases, mobile phones will become essential for membership of peer groups that organise their social life on the move and by means of mobile phones," they conclude.

British Medical Journal November 4, 2000; 321: 1155

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DR. MERCOLA'S COMMENT: This is an interesting social observation. Like most aspects of life it has its good and bad. The good is obvious, in that teens are smoking less. The concern here though is that extensive cell phone use is likely to be even more dangerous for their health than smoking. We know the risks of smoking and have studied that for many decades. NO ONE has studied the long-term effects of cell phone radiation on one's brain. There is enough suggestive evidence to have great concern. Cell phones should be used only when the need is urgent, if at all.
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Warning On Kids And Cell Phones

Dec. 11, 2000

(CBS) --Should kids be allowed to use cell phones?

It's not a good idea, says a scientist who headed up a British government-commissioned probe into the safety of cell phones.

Sir William Stewart of Tayside University in Scotland says children should not use mobile phones until more is known about any effect they may have on still-developing skulls and nervous systems.

Stewart at the same time noted that "no firm evidence" has been found linking cell phones to any risk to the health of the general population.

He estimates it could take a decade for evidence of any risks to emerge and if harmful effects are found, they are more likely to be seen in children because their bodies are still developing.

"In line with our precautionary approach at this time we believe the widespread use of mobile phones by children for non-essential calls should be discouraged," cautioned Stewart, in a BBC radio interview.

The report by Stewart and other scientists working on the inquiry could be a blow to the cell phone industry, which has sought to tap the vast youth market.

Stewart says there is some "preliminary evidence" that emissions from mobile phones can cause subtle biological reactions, such as changes in response times.

"That does not mean that these effects lead to disease," explains Stewart. "But this is a new technology and we are recommending...that a precautionary approach be adopted until new information is available."

Children have thinner skulls, smaller heads, and still-developing nervous systems, all factors which can make them more vulnerable to any adverse effects from the phones, according to Stewart.

The British inquiry committee was established last year to investigate concerns that radiation from mobile phones might be able to trigger cancer, memory loss and Alzheimer's disease.

Stewart says the public ought to have more information when they buy mobiles, and there should be better planning about the location of mobile phone antennas.

Will Stewart continue to use cell phones, now that he's spent some time studying the increasingly popular devices? He says yes, but he will not recommend that his grandchildren do the same.

A source close to the inquiry Wednesday told Reuters that the scientists were worried by "odd findings."

"One odd finding came up when we looked at microwave radiation on nematode worms. That showed odd changes to the protein structure," said the source. "It was a kind of heat shock on the protein. You know, slightly cooked."