Published on 25.10.19
Translated from French
The National Agency for Food Safety, Environment and Labor (ANSES) published on 21 October 2019 its opinion on the health effects related to waves emitted by mobile phones when used close to the body. The opinion does not reveal a serious and immediate danger but underlines that the results of the scientific studies published to date do not make it possible to exclude the appearance of biological effects in humans beyond certain thresholds.
In a precautionary approach, the Ministers of Ecological and Solidarity Transition, Solidarities and Health and Economy and Finance have decided to undertake the following actions, which will meet the recommendations made by ANSES. They will be conducted with the support of the National Frequency Agency (ANFR):
1 / France will ask the European Commission to reinforce the requirements for new mobile phones put on the market. As recommended by ANSES, the Government will request that the approval tests be carried out in contact with the apparatus, and not 5 mm as is currently the case, so that they are more representative of the actual exposure. users ;
2 / The ANFR will develop tools to reinforce user information:
The mobile application “Open Barres” will be completed by the end of the year to allow each user to know the emissions of his mobile phone model;
The recommended usage distances will also be indicated on the ANFR website (data.anfr.fr), which already mentions the distances for the telephones checked, as well as the “OpenBarres” application. On the condition of good cooperation from manufacturers, they will also be available by the end of the year.
3 / The Government will bring together major manufacturers to undertake a voluntary process to update the software of their models put on the market before the application of recent, more restrictive emission standards;
4 / Lastly, ANFR’s control of products placed on the market will be increased by 30% in 2020.
The Government also reminds users of the 6 good behaviors to adopt when using a mobile phone to reduce its exposure to radio frequencies ( www.radiofrequences.gouv.fr/les-gestion-to-limit- his-exhibition-a99.html ):
1. Use a hands-free kit
2. Emphasize text messages to communicate
3. Give priority to areas with good reception
4. Avoid keeping your phone to your ear in transport
5. Choose a mobile phone with a low SAR
6. Avoid long conversations
https://twitter.com/MinSoliSante/status/1187712033552306176?s=20
Press contacts
Cabinet of Elisabeth Borne: 01 40 81 77 57 secretariat.presse-transports@transports.gouv.fr
Cabinet of Agnès Buzyn: 01 40 56 50 49 sec.presse.solidarites-sante@sante.gouv.fr
Cabinet of Agnès Pannier-Runacher: +33 (0) 1 53 18 44 38 press.semef@cabinets.finances.gouv.fr
SAR:
Part of the energy carried by electromagnetic waves is absorbed by the human body. To quantify this effect, the reference measurement is the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) for all waves between 100 kHz and 10 GHz. SAR is expressed in watts per kilogram (W / kg).
Added note by EMFSA
French ministerial announcements: an important step in our actions to protect the health of mobile phone users