
Cell Phone Cancer and Six Other Workplace Dangers
Status: Trending past rumor to serious possibility, thanks to a new WHO report.
The World Health Organization has announced that experts have deemed the use of cell phones to be “possibly carcinogenic.” According to the news release, “The WHO/International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has classified radiofrequency electromagnetic fields as possibly carcinogenic to humans… based on an increased risk for glioma, a malignant type of brain cancer, associated with wireless phone use.” Or, in less scientific terms, yikes. Long dismissed as the stuff of urban legend, the alleged connection between mobile devices and horrifying illness suddenly takes on a seriousness that is hard to ignore, and seems certain to fuel extensive research and debate for years to come. Already, we’d guess, it’s causing a lot of people to feel a little funny about their beloved cell phones — and the phones they give their kids. However things play out, there’s no doubt that workplace tools – and the modern workplace itself — can be hazardous to your health in a surprisingly wide variety of ways.