New Zealand: More RF/MW Health Stiudies "Imperative".

An independent report commissioned by New Zealand's Ministry of Health has called for more research to examine the potential health effects from exposure to RF/MW radiation. In the intenm the ministry advises taking "no-cost" measures to reduce exposures from wireless transmitters-especially for potentially sensitive groups such as children.

"It is imperative that the scientific issues be clarified as soon as possible, as there is much at stake," according to a report, Literature Review on the Health Effects of RF Radiation, which was published in August for in-house policy-making and is available on request. Reviews in Australia, Europe and the U.S. have reached similar conclusions (see MWN, S/094 and S/95).

The report, by Dr. Michael Bates of the Institute of Environmental Science and Research in Porirua and Drs. Marten Hutt and Alistair Woodward of the Wellington School of Medicine, cautioned policy-makers not to use the limited information on nontherrnal RF/MW interaction to dismiss potential health effects: "There is a high level of seientfic uncertainty, and the implicadons for policy-making depend largely on where the onus of proof lies: the epidemiological evidence may be construed as either 'incomplete evidence of cause' or 'incomplete evidence of safety.'"

The authors added that while there are no widely accepted biological mechanisms to explain health effects, it would be premature to dismiss these effects as biologically implausible. The review turned up strong evidence for electromagnetic interference with medical devices, but a dearth of research to link RF/MW exposure to leukemia, brain and lung cancers and effects on the blood, chromosomes, eyes and cardiovascular system. Addidonally, studies on the female reproductive and nervous systems are inconclusive, according to the report.