In the short time they've been around, cellphones have changed the world. Just 20 years ago -- if you can believe it -- you had to discuss dinner plans before you arrived at the grocery store. And just 20 years ago, you didn't have to field work calls until you were actually at work.
Cellphones gave us new ways to stay connected. For some, they also provided a new reason for worry. Cellphones release microwave radiation when they're in use, a fact that inevitably led to fears of brain cancer.
Just as inevitably, worries about brain cancer spawned a market for products that supposedly protect cellphone users. For $62, you can order a Delta Shield, a thin polyester patch that contains a microchip that allegedly renders cellphones harmless. Users are instructed to place the patch on their cellphone battery. The similar BIOPRO Cell Chip, sold online for $35, attaches to the outside of the phone. The penny-sized WaveShield 2000 Gold, selling for about $25, fits on the earpiece.
The claims: The website for the Delta Shield claims that it is "the only cellphone protection device that has proven efficacy." An unpublished scientific paper highlighted on the site supposedly shows that the device can convert harmful delta brain waves to helpful alpha waves.
One site selling the BIOPRO Cell Chip site says its patented technology "has been proven in numerous scientific studies to neutralize the dangers of electromagnetic radiation from cellphones and other devices." The site goes on to explain that the device "superimposes a low-frequency 'noise field' on EMR [electromagnetic radiation] that resembles the natural resonant frequencies of the body's living cells. This effectively renders EMR harmless."
The site for the WaveShield 2000 Gold claims that the device can reduce radiation from the earpiece by "50-97%." The company used to claim that similar devices blocked up to 99% of radiation coming from the antenna -- the major source of cellphone radiation -- until the FTC filed suit for false advertising in 2002.
The bottom line: "Most [experts] think these devices are worthless," says Richard Kaye, a former San Diego-based chiropractor and a Delta Shield business consultant. Though he is convinced the product works -- for one thing, he says, the side of his head no longer gets warm when he uses his cellphone -- two independent experts did, indeed, reach the opposite conclusion.
