Output power levels from mobile phones in different geographical areas; implications for exposure assessment.
Lonn S, Forssen U, Vecchia P, Ahlbom A, Feychting M. · 2004
View Original AbstractRural mobile phone users receive twice the radiation exposure as city users due to phones operating at maximum power 50% versus 25% of the time.
Plain English Summary
Swedish researchers analyzed mobile phone power output data from over one million calls across rural and urban areas to understand how location affects radiation exposure. They found that phones in rural areas operate at maximum power 50% of the time compared to only 25% in cities, while using minimum power just 3% of the time versus 22% in urban areas. This means people living in rural areas receive significantly higher radiofrequency radiation exposure from their mobile phones due to greater distances between cell towers.
Why This Matters
This study reveals a critical factor that most people never consider: where you live dramatically affects your EMF exposure from mobile phone use. The science demonstrates that rural phone users receive roughly double the radiation exposure compared to city dwellers, simply because their phones must work harder to maintain connection with distant cell towers. What this means for you is that epidemiological studies examining mobile phone health effects must account for geographic location, as previous research may have underestimated rural exposures while overestimating urban ones. The reality is that millions of rural residents are unknowingly experiencing much higher radiation levels during every phone call, yet this factor has been largely overlooked in health assessments and safety guidelines.
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study. The study examined exposure from: 900 MHz and the 1800 MHz
Study Details
To analyse the distribution of power levels from mobile phones in four geographical areas with different population densities.
The output power for all mobile phone calls managed by the GSM operator Telia Mobile was recorded du...
In the rural area, the highest power level was used about 50% of the time, while the lowest power wa...
In rural areas where base stations are sparse, the output power level used by mobile phones are on average considerably higher than in more densely populated areas. A quantitative assessment of individual exposure to radiofrequency fields is important for epidemiological studies of possible health effects for many reasons. Degree of urbanisation may be an important parameter to consider in the assessment of radiofrequency exposure from mobile phone use.
Show BibTeX
@article{s_2004_output_power_levels_from_2375,
author = {Lonn S and Forssen U and Vecchia P and Ahlbom A and Feychting M.},
title = {Output power levels from mobile phones in different geographical areas; implications for exposure assessment.},
year = {2004},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15317918/},
}