Here is a gripping narrative of scientific detection that chronicles an unprecedented journey of discovery by Dr. George Carlo into the impact of cell phones on human health. This book is a clarion call sounding the message that consumers need not allow themselves to become guinea pigs for new technologies whose long-term health effects are unknown. It is essential reading for the 90,000,000 Americans currently using wireless phones, and the millions who may begin using them in the future. In 1993, as news reports appeared of people using cell phones who'd also developed brain tumors, Carlo was hired by the cell-phone industry to affirm the safety of its product. He soon learned there was little research into whether these phones could impair human health, and no consensus among scientists on the question. Carlo's own research intensified his concern, especially the startling discovery that human blood cells could be damaged by the radiation emitted from a cell phone. He made urgent recommendations to the industry, including a plea that cell phones not be marketed to children. Yet, phones emblazoned with cartoon characters soon hit the market. In 1999, the industry quit funding the independent research directed by Carlo, investigated his private life, and began a whispering campaign that sought to discredit him. Appalled but undeterred, he has now brought his case to the public in a powerful assessment of the dangers posed by wireless phones-with safeguards readers can use to protect themselves-that is destined to be placed alongside such classics as Silent Spring, Microbe Hunters, and The Coming Plague.
In 1993, when the cell phone industry's chief lobbyist hired epidemiologist and pathologist Carlo to refute claims that cell phones, which had never been subjected to premarket testing, cause cancer, no one thought he would discover otherwise. But after six years of exhaustive analysis and scrupulous peer review, the results proved, according to this report, that radiation from a cell phone's antenna can cause the formation of micronuclei red flags for cancer in the brain. Children in particular are more susceptible to the radiation than adults. Carlo reported his findings to the industry and the FDA and advocated for continued research, but both parties still maintain that cell phones are safe. Here, Carlo and syndicated columnist Schram retrace Carlo's scientific undertaking and what they cast as a sinister web of corporate greed and masterful PR "spin" that choked his efforts. Schram provides the primary narrative, with Carlo's insights and recollections scattered throughout, a format that grows repetitive. Despite the captivating story, many consumers won't want to slog through the detailed scientific explanations to get to the bottom-line safety recommendations. Journalists, policymakers and consumer advocacy groups, however, will find this no-holds-barred book extraordinarily informative as they continue investigations of the industry. Agent, Ronald L. Goldfarb.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
