Several cities are considering passing laws that would require mobile phones to come with a warning label on them. This warning label would inform people about the dangers of cell phone use and would let them know about the radiation levels that they are being exposed to when using certain phones. The legislation that creates such warning labels may also include other things like limitations on the advertising of mobile phones.

Do these emerging new laws make sense or are they excessive?

Warning Labels on Mobile Phones. San Francisco in the United States is an example of a city that is looking seriously at the mobile phone warning labels. The types of labels that are currently being recommended here are a good example of what cities in other parts of the world are also considering. Some of the rules and regulations that are being suggested as a part of this emerging legislation include:

All mobile phones that are sold must come with a warning label on them that informs the user of the exact information about the radiation levels that they are being exposed to when they choose to use the phone. The main motivation for this law is a concern that mobile phone radiation levels are too high and can cause problems like cancer, brain tumors and infertility. Studies addressing this issue continue to be inconclusive. However there are recent reports which provide information about the phones that are producing a lot of radiation and those which have the lowest levels of radiation emission. People who are concerned about the possibilities of health risks associated with the use of mobile phones could use this information to make smart choices about buying low-radiation phones.There may be specific warnings for women who are pregnant. The state of Maine is considering legislation that would include a warning about how mobile phone radiation can harm the baby that a woman is carrying inside of her.

Phones that are sold should come with a recommendation to purchase a head set to use along with the handset. It is believed that the problems that are caused by exposure to mobile phone radiation (if indeed there are any) are severely diminished when you choose to use a head set with your mobile phone. It is being suggested that it is either a requirement that a headset be sold with each phone that is sold or that there is at least a strong warning to people that they should consider making this additional purchase when they buy a mobile phone.

Advertising of mobile phones will no longer be aimed at children. It is believed that exposure to mobile phone radiation is worse for children and therefore there may be changes that take place which would prohibit cell phone companies from creating ads that are geared towards children. Hm, does this remind us at all of when cigarette companies were forced to stop advertising to kids?!

School districts would be either encouraged or required to educate children and their parents about the potential side effects of radiation from mobile phones. Schools might also have to follow rules about not promoting the use of mobile phones in their classrooms.

Government agencies may be required to purchase only low-radiation mobile phones. Many government agencies give mobile phones to their staff members to use for business purposes. New legislation could require that these agencies purchase only those phones that are ranked as having the lowest radiation emissions.

Pros and Cons of These Warning Labels and Laws

There are some people who believe that these new warning labels are a really great idea. There are other people who believe that these new rules aren’t smart at all. Some of the pros and cons of these new warning labels could be:

Benefits of warning labels on mobile phones:

Consumers would have immediate access to information about the exact levels of radiation that they are being exposed to when they use their mobile phones.

Consumers would be more likely to use headsets than they do now which prevents a variety of problems including potential health hazards.

If there is a link between mobile phone radiation and health issues then the number of cases of radiation-related illnesses should go down over time as a result of this new legislation.

Mobile phone companies would be motivated to make low-emission handsets.

Mobile phone radiation may be bad for the earth so eco-friendly consumers could be pleased by the new changes.

Drawbacks of warning labels on mobile phones:

Because of supply-and-demand issues the cost of low-radiation mobile phones might increase.

There is some question as to whether or not there are health problems caused by mobile phone radiation; this new legislation could cause unnecessary panic about the use of mobile phones.

The laws are not going to be federal so the regulations could end up varying a lot from state to state. This could end up confusing consumers.

Most consumers don’t currently understand what the radiation levels mean on their mobile phones so education on this issue would be necessary. This could end up being costly.

It may become more difficult to promote phones that are designed specifically for kids if the advertising rules are changed. There are many benefits to kid-specific phones (such as allowing parents to monitor kids’ phone use) so it would be unfortunate to see them go unadvertised because of this issue.

This could be one more thing that schools have to deal with in a system that already has them spread too thin in their educational efforts.

Will this happen?

It is difficult to say whether mobile phones will soon be coming with warning labels or not. There are some places (like San Francisco) where there is a lot of government support for these new rules and regulations. However a lot of people find the drawbacks of this to outweigh the benefits. Facing such opposition, it may be possible that this type of legislation never really gets off of the ground.

What do you think – should we have warning labels on mobile phones in the future ?