Cellular Phone Transmitter – Health Hazard?

Cell phones are everywhere these days and so are cellular phone transmitters. Just as people have asked about the risks of using cell phones, the cellular phone transmitter raises concerns about potential radiation exposure.

The radiation levels of cell phone transmitters are monitored by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC), a US government agency. The FCC adopted guidelines for evaluating the safety of cellular transmitters back in 1996 and set a radiation safety level that is many times greater than the radiation exposure at the base of cellular phone transmission towers.

Cell phone transmitters work by sending out radio waves in a rather narrow field directed toward the horizon. The energy in those waves dissipates rapidly as it moves away from the transmitter and so it makes sense then that radiation released at the top of a 50- to 200-foot cellular transmission tower will likely pose little risk to people on the ground below.

There is a more urgent health concern, however, when cellular phone transmitters are located on rooftops in urban areas since exposure to levels that are closer to the FCC safety guidelines are possible when a person is very close to a rooftop transmitter. As a result of this, it is never a good idea to place a cellular phone transmitte on rooftops that have public access.

You may be wondering if a rooftop cell phone transmitter a hazard to people living or working in the building? Since rooftop transmitters typically operate at lower power levels than tower-mounted transmitters, plus the fact that the energy is absorbed by the building itself, rooftop cell phone transmitters are relatively safe.

Also see; cell phone health.

Author Notes:

Jack Adams contributes and publishes news editorial to http://www.cell-phones-n-plans.com. A cellular phone industry resource that features service plan comparisons, cellular phone reviews and articles.