Switzerland Blindly Trusts Apple

iPhone sales stop in France – What does it mean for Swiss users?
Switzerland blindly trusts Apple
blick.ch, 18 September 2023, updated 19 September 2023 - auto-translation

National Councilor Marionna Schlatter

While Apple in France had to stop selling an older iPhone model due to excessive radiation levels, in Switzerland they don't even know who would be responsible for such controls. Green National Councilor Marionna Schlatter is outraged.

(Photo):For Green Party National Councilor Marionna Schlatter, the case shows how important state control of radiation protection is. So far it doesn't exist in Switzerland.

The announcement from the French radiation regulatory authority sent waves far beyond the country's borders. Last week  it announced that the iPhone 12 had failed a check to ensure compliance with radiation limits. The so-called SAR value, which indicates how much radiation a device emits, was higher than permitted when there was direct physical contact or when the cell phone was in the pocket.

France is temporarily recalling the iPhone 12 – with consequences for Switzerland

Radiation levels too high
France is temporarily recalling the iPhone 12 – with consequences for Switzerland
by John Mettler, tagesanzeiger.ch, 28 September 2023 - auto-translation

 

In the worst case scenario, manufacturer Apple is threatened with a definitive ban on this smartphone model. Since there is an agreement with the EU, Switzerland would have to support such a measure.

(Photo): Tourists take a selfie in front of the Eiffel Tower: In France there is a regulatory authority that controls the radiation emitted by smartphones. Photo: Philippe Lopez (AFP)

This time Apple got it: According to a test by the Agence Nationale des Fréquences (ANFR) in France, the iPhone 12 emits too much radiation. The supervisory authority has now called on the US technology group to “use all available means to quickly remedy this situation”.

iPhone 15 overheating issue makes it 'too hot to touch', owners say

iPhone 15 overheating issue makes it 'too hot to touch', owners say
by Anthony Cuthbertson, independent.co.uk, 27 September 2023

Apple iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro Max both reportedly reaching high temperatures

The newly-released iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro Max are suffering from overheating issues, according to owners.

The flagship Apple phones are reportedly reaching temperatures as high as 47C, with some users claiming that the handsets become too hot to touch while not using a case.

“My iPhone 15 Pro Max is almost too hot to touch while fast charging right now,” 9to5Mac reporter Ian Zelbo wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“I thought people were overexaggerating but no this isn’t great. Interestingly, if I’m holding it, the left side rail and a little of the back on the left side is what is the hottest by far... lines up perfectly with the logic board.”

Phone Radiation: Letter by Prof. Tom Butler to the Editor, Irish Examiner

Excellent letter to the Editor on cell phone radiation by Prof. Tom Butler - Irish Examiner, 25 Sept. 2023.

Phone radiation

The article published in last Saturday’s business section on the Apple iPhone 12 is materially and factually incorrect. It states, regarding mobile phones: “According to the WHO, no adverse health effects have been established as being caused by them.”

In 2011, the WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), classified radiofrequency radiation as a Group 2B carcinogen and “possibly carcinogenic to humans”. This classification was based on evidence to 2011 of an increased risk of glioma, a malignant type of brain cancer, associated with mobile phone use. Experimental and epidemiological research since 2011 corroborated and extended this finding and many scientists now believe, based on recent “clear evidence”, that radiofrequency radiation should be reclassified as a Group 2A probable or a Group 1 carcinogen along with cigarettes. It must be noted that the WHO unequivocally expresses
concerns about the health risks to children from exposure to radiofrequency radiation, including that emitted by mobile phones.

Switzerland: Smart Meter as a Major Health Hazard: Referendum Possible

Press release from the Swiss Association for Protection against Radiation (Verein Schutz vor Strahlung) concerning smart meters and the upcoming debate (week of 25 September) on this issue in the National Council of the Swiss Parliament.

Media release
Referendum possible
Smartmeter as a major health hazard
Schutz-vor-strahlung, Zurich, September 22, 2023 - translation by DeepL

With the Energy and Electricity Supply Act (also known as the "Mantelerlass"), the parliament wants to accelerate the introduction of renewable energies. The association Schutz-vor-Strahlung is considering the launch of a referendum against the law. This law provides for the obligation to install digital electricity meters and controls, so-called smart meters, in all private households.
In most cases, these devices are associated with health risks and are in conflict with data protection. Another goal in introducing smart meters, combined with flexible electricity tariffs, would be to bring about a change in behavior among the population. Any possibility of controlling household appliances from the outside is an invasion of privacy.

Next week, the National Council will finish debating the remaining differences in the Electricity “Mantelerlass” (revision of the Energy and Electricity Supply Act). The association Schutz-vor-Strahlung vehemently criticizes the planned bill. This is because it stipulates that the Federal Council must oblige all electricity producers and consumers to install a digital electricity meter and a control unit. These devices are smart meters, which, according to the decree, must be installed in every Swiss household.

Health hazards due to radiation

27 New Papers on Electromagnetic Fields and Biology or Health (18 September 2023)

27 New Papers on Electromagnetic Fields and Biology or Health
Electromagnetic Radiation Safety, 18 September 2023

Dr. Joel Moscowitz, University of California Berkeley, has been circulating abstracts of newly-published scientific papers on radio frequency and other non-ionizing electromagnetic fields (EMF) about once a month since 2016. The complete collection of these papers contains more than 1,900 abstracts and links to more than 2,000 papers. Several hundred EMF scientists around the world receive these updates.

To see abstracts for the most recent papers or to download volumes 1 and/or 2 of this collection go to:
https://www.saferemr.com/2022/06/recent-research-on-wireless-radiation.html

Recent Research on Wireless Radiation and Electromagnetic Fields

The European Union assessments of radiofrequency radiation health risks – another hard nut to crack (Review)

France Bans Apple iPhone 12 While Canadians Remain at Risk

France bans Apple iPhone 12 while Canadians remain at risk

An immediate ban in Canada is imperative to protect public health

For immediate release
OAKVILLE, ON.

September 18, 2023 – Canada is continuing to permit sales of Apple's iPhone 12 even after it has been banned from sale in France because it emits dangerously high levels of microwave radiofrequency radiation.

On September 12th, France's regulator announced that sales of Apple's iPhone 12 were banned until Apple implemented changes that would reduce the level of microwave radiofrequency radiation emissions below France’s regulatory maximum Specific Absorption Rate (SAR).

Although Health Canada’s Safety Code 6 SAR maximum limits are lower, the iPhone 12 phones remain on the Canadian market. Canada’s cell phone emissions regulator, Innovation Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) says that Canada has some of the toughest standards for cell phone safety in the world: every device needs to pass rigorous testing and a certification process before being sold, and they are then regularly audited afterward.

If France’s SAR limits are breached, how can Canada’s not be exceeded to an even greater degree? We’ve been asking.

After nearly three years, Sharon Noble, Director, Citizens for Safer Tech, finally received information about ISED’s cell phone Market Surveillance Program. In the five years of audits sent to Ms Noble, a total of only 90 phones had been tested. None had been tested at zero distance from the body, where many people use and store their phones. 

Dr. Arazi’s Phonegate ebook available in English for free

Dr. Arazi’s Phonegate ebook available in English for free
Par : Equipe Phonegate • 18 Sep 2023

Link to download of the ebook to be found in Phonegate's article:

https://phonegatealert.org/download/dr-arazis-phonegate-ebook-available-in-english-for-free/

Following the revelations about Apple's iPhone 12 exceeding SAR, our NGO asked Dr Marc Arazi, the author of the book Phonegate and his publisher Massot éditions to allow the ebook to be downloaded in its English version. They have authorized us to make it downloadable for one month, i.e. until October 18, 2023. This should enable a better understanding of this global scandal, the extent of which we are only just beginning to grasp.

The scandal finally revealed for the first time in the world. There are more than 5 billion phone users in the world and many of us keep them at our fingertips. And this from a very young age! Some even sleep with it.

You have been lied to for years: YOUR CELL PHONE IS DANGEROUS.

Few know that the manufacturers of our beloved smartphones have knowingly overexposed us to waves, well beyond the safety standards. Worse, some of them have faked the test results with software, as in the case of dieselgate. This scandal has a name: PHONEGATE.

5G Radiofrequency Radiation Caused the Microwave Syndrome in a Family Living Close to the Base Stations

Fourth study shows that 5G causes ill health symptoms

Swedish Radiation Protection Foundation, stralskyddsstiftelsen.se, 15 September 2023 - auto-translation

Original article:
https://w:ww.stralskyddsstiftelsen.se/2023/09/15/fjarde-studie-visar-att-5g-orsakar-ohalsosymptom/

Link to study:
https://www.fortunejournals.com/articles/5g-radiofrequency-radiation-caused-the-microwave-syndrome-in-a-family-living-close-to-the-base-stations.pdf

A fourth case study that studied the health effects of radiation from new 5G base stations shows that three people in a family have an increased incidence of a range of symptoms linked to exposure to microwave radiation. The study also shows that the radiation in the home was greatly increased due to the proximity of two base stations for 5G whose antennas were aimed at the home.

The new case study, which was published in the Journal of Cancer Science and Clinical Therapeutics, was carried out by Mona Nilsson from the Radiation Protection Foundation and Dr. Lennart Hardell, former professor of oncology at Örebro University Hospital and epidemiologist with 40 years of research experience and now working at the Environment and Cancer Research Foundation . They have also published the previous three case studies done on the health effects of radiation from 5G base stations. These four case studies appear to be the only ones done so far on the health impact of 5G.

Fourth study by Lennart Hardell and Mona Nilsson shows that 5G causes ill health symptoms

This article in Swedish is easily auto-translated into English: The first two paragraphs of the article are translated here.

Original article:
https://www.stralskyddsstiftelsen.se/2023/09/15/fjarde-studie-visar-att-5g-orsakar-ohalsosymptom/

Fourth study shows that 5G causes ill health symptoms
Swedish Radiation Protection Foundation, stralskyddsstiftelsen.se, 15 September 2023

A fourth case study that studied the health effects of radiation from new 5G base stations shows that three people in a family have an increased incidence of a range of symptoms linked to exposure to microwave radiation. The study also shows that the radiation in the home was greatly increased due to the proximity of two base stations for 5G whose antennas were aimed at the home.

The new case study, which was published in the journal Journal of Cancer Science and Clinical Therapeutics, was carried out by Mona Nilsson from the Radiation Protection Foundation and Dr. Lennart Hardell, former professor of oncology at Örebro University Hospital and epidemiologist with 40 years of research experience and now working at the Environment and Cancer Research Foundation . They have also published the previous three case studies done on the health effects of radiation from 5G base stations. These four case studies appear to be the only ones done so far on the health impact of 5G.

Link to study:

https://www.fortunejournals.com/articles/5g-radiofrequency-radiation-caused-the-microwave-syndrome-in-a-family-living-close-to-the-base-stations.pdf

Schwannoma Puzzle - Did Cell Phone in Trouser Pocket Lead to a Tumor in the Thigh?

National health and regulatory authorities should take seriously the report of the French National Frequency Agency (ANFR) which tested the Apple iPhone 12 for radiation levels and found the SAR limb (arms and legs) value to surpass the regulatory level of radiation. Sales of the phone were temporarily halted in Europe due to safety fears. Cases are being reported of benign tumors appearing in the thigh and forearm of people keeping their cell phones in trouser or shirt pockets. It is scandalous that it seems that Apple has agreed to an update of the software in France to lower radiation levels, but probably not in the rest of the world.

Schwannoma Puzzle - Did Cell Phone in Trouser Pocket Lead to a Tumor in the Thigh?
microwavenews.com, September 14, 2023, last updated September 15, 2023

(Choice of photo by "Towards Better Health")

Three medical doctors have published a case report of a 40-year-old Italian man who developed a tumor in his thigh, near where he “habitually” kept his smartphone in a trouser pocket.

The case was published at the end of August in Radiology Case Reports, a peer-reviewed, open access journal.

The tumor, a painless mass, gradually expanded in the man’s left thigh over a period of six months, they wrote. It grew in his Schwann cells and is known as a schwannoma. It was benign.

iPhone 12 radiation fears: FDA is 'reviewing' Apple handsets after reports they are radioactive - as France halts sales

Apple stated it will issue a software update to fix the issue, adding that the software update will only affect phones in France, and not those in other countries. More than 81million iPhones were sold in the United States in 2021, the year after the model's release. Dr. Devra Davis, president of Environmental Health Trust, commented, "'Why should French people be more protected than Americans?"

EXCLUSIVE: iPhone 12 radiation fears: FDA is 'reviewing' Apple handsets after reports they are radioactive - as France halts sales

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it was reviewing the phone today
Device is currently banned for sale in France over radiation concerns
READ MORE: Now Germany and Belgium look to ban Apple's iPhone 12

By LUKE ANDREWS HEALTH REPORTER FOR DAILYMAIL.COM, 15 September 2023

Apple Inc./AFP via Getty Images

US health officials are looking into reports that the iPhone  12 emits harmful levels of radiation — after sales were temporarily halted in Europe due to safety fears.

A spokesperson for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) — which is partly responsible for making sure cellphones are safe — told DailyMail.com the agency was 'reviewing the available information'.

It comes after a regulator in France this week asked Apple   to stop selling the 2020 iPhone 12, claiming tests found the handset emits radiation levels that exceed EU restrictions.

Germany, Belgium and Spain have all signaled they could follow suit. Apple has disputed the findings, but the news has reignited deep-rooted fears about health and cellphone usage.

France : List of cell phones withdrawn or updated for deception and endangering users (update 12 September 2023)

List of cell phones withdrawn or updated for deception and endangering users
By : Phonegate Team • 12 Sep 2023

There are now 43 models of cell phones, identified as dangerous to the health of users, which have been either withdrawn from the French market or have seen their Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) updated by software. The latest: the Iphone 12, the Motorola Edge, the Essential Clap 20+ (you have until June 30, 2023 to bring it back to Boulanger), the Xiaomi Poco X3 and the Logicom Le Swipe.

iPhone 12 banned from sale in France

It’s a real thunderclap for Californian giant Apple. In a press release published on September 12, 2023, the French National Frequencies Agency (ANFR) has just announced the provisional withdrawal of the iPhone 12 for exceeding the regulatory SAR level for members. All distributors are therefore obliged to withdraw it from their points of sale as of today.

Breast Cancer in Women Under 50 on the Rise — Could Cellphones Play a Role?

Recent studies show breast cancer is the most common cancer in women under 50, fueling longstanding concerns about a possible link between devices like cellphones and cancer.

Breast Cancer in Women Under 50 on the Rise — Could Cellphones Play a Role?

By Suzanne Burdick, Ph.D., childrenshealthdefense.org, 6 Sep 2023

Early-onset breast cancer is on the rise in younger women in the U.S., according to two new peer-reviewed studies, leading some experts to wonder if cellphone use could be at least partially to blame.

The authors of an Aug. 16 study in JAMA Network Open looked at the health data from 2010 to 2019 of more than half a million people in the U.S. under 50 who reported having some kind of early-onset cancer.

They concluded breast cancer in 2019 had the highest incidence rate, with 12,649 new cases reported that year.

Meanwhile, the authors of a study published Sept. 5 in BMJ Oncology looked at worldwide cancer trends from 1990-2019. Breast cancer was responsible for the largest number of cases and associated deaths among younger people, with rates of 13.7 cases and 3.5 deaths per 100,000 people, they said.

Documentary "Dust to Dust - the Health Effects of 9/11"

In memory of those who lost their lives.

“Dust to Dust”, a 58-minute documentary produced by Bruce Kennedy and Heidi Dehncke-Fisher, is a tribute to the first responders of 9/11.  It describes their very serious health problems following clean-up of the toxic wreckage of the World Trade Center and the cover-up by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of the extreme hazardous contamination in the days immediately following the attacks “in order to get Wall Street – and the economy – up and running”.  Attention, the film shows the towers on fire and collapsing.  (The film is available on You Tube).)

Switzerland: Mobile phone radiation protection: the MedNIS consultancy service

The Swiss Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) has commissioned the University of Fribourg to inaugurate a national medical consultancy network dedicated to the topic of non-ionising radiation (RNI). 5-10% of the Swiss population considers itself electrosensitive. To accompany the development of mobile telephony and in particular the introduction of 5G, the Federal Council has approved a series of accompanying measures for health protection. These measures include the creation of a new medical consultancy service dedicated to the topic of RNI.

In French-speaking Switzerland, for the moment, there is an omerta in the media.

Mobile phone radiation protection: the MedNIS consultancy service
BY EDITORIAL-AB, ticino-politica.ch/, 9 Sep 2023 - auto-translation

Mobile telephony is an integral part of our daily lives, but its development also raises health and environmental issues. The Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) therefore commissioned the University of Fribourg to inaugurate a national medical consultancy network dedicated to the topic of non-ionising radiation (RNI). At the same time, the FOEN published the second report on monitoring exposure to RNI, which shows that health protection is guaranteed.

According to the report, 5-10% of the Swiss population considers itself electrosensitive. To accompany the development of mobile telephony and in particular the introduction of 5G, the Federal Council has approved a series of accompanying measures for health protection. These measures include the creation of a new medical consultancy service dedicated to the topic of RNI.

Swiss Parliament: 23.3905 INTERPELLATION: Who monitors compliance with the standards on radiation exposure (SAR value) applicable to mobile phones and other terminals?

23.3905 INTERPELLATION
Who monitors compliance with the standards on radiation exposure (SAR value) applicable to mobile phones and other terminals?

(This is an unofficial English auto-translation of the text.)

Submitted by:
SCHLATTER MARIONNA

Group of Greens

Swiss Green Party

Filed at:
National council on 16 June 2023

Status of deliberations:
Position statement in response to the intervention is available

Submitted text:

The “Phonegate” scandal, which broke out in France in 2018, revealed that cell phone manufacturers were using subterfuge when measuring their devices to lower the radiation value. The SAR value (specific absorption rate) measures the absorption of electromagnetic radiation by the body. It is used to assess the potential effects of exposure to radiation emitted by mobile phones and other devices used close to the body. The tests are carried out on mannequins. In the wake of “Phonegate”, the international standards regarding the SAR index have been adapted, improving the regulations on controls, evaluation and reporting and clarifying in particular the measurement procedure.

The European Commission confirms Phonegate Alert’s call to withdraw dangerous cell phones

The European Commission confirms Phonegate Alert’s call to withdraw dangerous cell phones
By : Phonegate Team • 8 Sep 2023

In a reply dated September 1, 2023 to a question from Polish MEP Beata Mazurek, the European Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton, confirmed the European Commission’s position that it is the exclusive responsibility of member states and their surveillance authorities to declare non-compliant cell phones and remove them from the EU market.

In fact, Thierry Breton stated that:

« The Phonegate Alert’s allegations, as well as the 2016 study[1] carried out by the French agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety (ANSES), are a matter of concern. Indeed, mobile phones which do not comply with the Radio Equipment Directive (RED)[2] shall not be placed on the EU market. »

And to add :

« Notifying measures taken against dangerous products in European Rapid Alert system for dangerous products (RAPEX/Safety Gate system) is the responsibility of the market surveillance enforcement authorities which is, again, a competence of the Member States. »

Continue reading:

https://phonegatealert.org/en/european-commission-confirms-phonegate-alerts-call-to-withdraw-dangerous-cell-phones/

Cell phones: One hundred brain tumor victims demand justice in the USA - Update

Cell phones: One hundred of brain tumor victims demand justice in the USA
By : Phonegate Team • 6 Sep 2023

While a South Korean epidemiological study has recently correlated the incidence of brain tumors and the use of cell phones, many plaintiffs in several regions of the world, including a hundred in the U.S. are demanding that justice recognize the responsibility of manufacturers in brain tumors that affected them or one of their relatives. If the Court of Appeal of Turin issued a decision in favor of a victim suffering from an acoustic neuroma (benign tumor) in November 2022, a judgment rendered on April 21, 2023 in the United States rejected part of the claims against the smartphone manufacturer Motorola. (Updated on 6/09/2023) The decision came down on August 1, 2023 in favor of the cell phone industry. The plaintiffs have announced that they will appeal.

United States: All Plaintiff Experts Barred in Cell Phone Brain Tumor Lawsuits

All Plaintiff Experts Barred in Cell Phone Brain Tumor Lawsuits
Twenty-Two Years and Counting
microwavenews.com, May 4, 2023, Last updated August 31, 2023

Michael Murray and his daughter Alicia* (photo from
Murray family via the Sun-Sentinel)

In a big win for the telecoms, and Motorola in particular, a judge has disallowed testimony from the entire slate of expert witnesses who were scheduled  to support claims that cell phones can lead to brain tumors.

Judge Alfred Irving Jr. of the Washington DC Superior Court issued the ruling on April 25 in a set of 13 cases collectively known as Murray v Motorola.

The Murray litigation has been going on for a long, long time —think Jarndyce. The original claim was filed more than 20 years ago. In November 2001, Mayer Morganroth and his son Jeffrey Morganroth sued Motorola on behalf of Michael Murray, a 34-year-old technician who had developed a malignant glioma after testing cell phones for Motorola (details in MWN, N/D01).

Babies need people, not devices. Stop giving them screen time.

Babies need people, not devices. Stop giving them screen time.
By Susan Linn, Opinion, Washington Post, 29 Aug. 2023

Susan Linn, a psychologist, is a research associate at Boston Children’s Hospital, a lecturer on psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and the author, most recently, of “Who’s Raising the Kids?: Big Tech, Big Business, and the Lives of Children.”

(Washington Post staff; iStock)

We know a great deal about what babies and toddlers need to thrive: food, shelter, safety, love and medical care. In addition to those basics, they also require, and actively seek, repeated, positive, real-life interaction with their caregivers — fulfilling an inborn need for relationships that our increasingly online world threatens to disrupt. Smartphones, tablets and other digital distractions draw the attention of babies and caregivers away from one another to whatever beckons from a screen.

It’s hopeful news that government officials are  calling for regulations on tech companies’ marketing to children and adolescents. But the public discourse often leaves out products aimed at babies and toddlers, despite a growing body of research demonstrating that, for children younger than 2, hours of screen time can harm their physical, social, emotional and cognitive development.

Phonegate Alert Ready to Take Legal Action against ANFR’s Failings

Phonegate Alert Ready to Take Legal Action against ANFR’s Failings
By : Phonegate Team • 31 Aug 2023

After several unanswered emails to the Agence nationale des fréquences (ANFR), Phonegate Alert officially notified it on August 23, 2023, to find out whether it had complied with its obligation to inform European Union authorities of the non-compliance of 42 cell phone models exceeding the set Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) threshold, in accordance with what is laid down in the so-called “RED” Directive 2014/53/EU.

An obligation to inform European Union authorities

The non-compliance of mobile telephony equipment, such as the 42 phone models exceeding the set SAR threshold, triggers the application of Article 40 of the RED Directive, and in particular the obligation for the French market surveillance authority, ANFR, to comply with the following obligation: