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RoadBikeReview Member
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Putting Your Phone in Your Jersey Pocket
Do you put your mobile phone in your back jersey pocket while riding? If so, please consider the following for the sake of your long term health.
I used to ride with my mobile phone in my back pocket because it was a very convenient place to put my phone, not to mention that my XL-sized phone at the time didn't fit in my bike bag. By putting my phone in my jersey pocket, that means the phone was laying 0.0 cm from my body, almost directly on my kidney, for hours at a time.
Over the years, I've been hearing warnings from health professionals about incidence of cancer that strongly correlate the location of certain cancers with the location of where people carry their phones on their bodies (next to their ear, in their pocket, in their bra, etc.) and that really got me thinking and a bit concerned. In addition, I've been in the IT industry for over 20 years and the number of people I've know who have been getting brain cancer seriously concerns me since us IT people are typically very heavy mobile phone users.
I have a Google Pixel 2 and Google's Safety & Regulatory Information document states:
Body worn operation
Pixel complies with radio frequency specifications when used near your ear or at a distance of 0.4 in (1.0 cm) from your body. Pixel XL complies with radio frequency specifications when used near your ear or at a distance of 0.4 in (1.0 cm) from your body. Ensure that the device accessories, such as a device case and device holster, are not composed of metal components. Keep the device away from your body to meet the distance requirement.
Note that all mobile phones have similar safety documents, you probably just don't know it because it's buried somewhere and never talked about.
Note what the quote says: "at a distance of 1.0 cm from your body". Who carries their phone that far from their body? When it's in your pocket or next to your ear, it's 0.0 cm from your body! In other words, in order to meet government standards, cell phone companies test their phones at distances from the body that do not represent the distance the average consumer carries a phone from his or her body.
I now make sure that my phone is in my seat pack when I ride and I put it on airplane mode which allows the GPS function to continue to work (so Strava can track me) but turns off the WiFi and Bluetooth signals. That puts the phone several inches from my body and reduces possible radiation coming from the phone.
For an in-depth look at this topic, please view the following video:
So once again, if you ride with you phone in your jersey pocket, please consider putting the phone in your seat pack or turn the phone off. It's up to you if you want to ignore this advice, but this seems like a relatively simple change you could make to minimize the risk of some potentially awful health problems in the future.
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 Originally Posted by PoorInRichfield
Do you put your mobile phone in your back jersey pocket while riding? If so, please consider the following for the sake of your long term health.
I used to ride with my mobile phone in my back pocket because it was a very convenient place to put my phone, not to mention that my XL-sized phone at the time didn't fit in my bike bag. By putting my phone in my jersey pocket, that means the phone was laying 0.0 cm from my body, almost directly on my kidney, for hours at a time.
Over the years, I've been hearing warnings from health professionals about incidence of cancer that strongly correlate the location of certain cancers with the location of where people carry their phones on their bodies (next to their ear, in their pocket, in their bra, etc.) and that really got me thinking and a bit concerned. In addition, I've been in the IT industry for over 20 years and the number of people I've know who have been getting brain cancer seriously concerns me since us IT people are typically very heavy mobile phone users.
I have a Google Pixel 2 and Google's Safety & Regulatory Information document states:
Note that all mobile phones have similar safety documents, you probably just don't know it because it's buried somewhere and never talked about.
Note what the quote says: "at a distance of 1.0 cm from your body". Who carries their phone that far from their body? When it's in your pocket or next to your ear, it's 0.0 cm from your body! In other words, in order to meet government standards, cell phone companies test their phones at distances from the body that do not represent the distance the average consumer carries a phone from his or her body.
I now make sure that my phone is in my seat pack when I ride and I put it on airplane mode which allows the GPS function to continue to work (so Strava can track me) but turns off the WiFi and Bluetooth signals. That puts the phone several inches from my body and reduces possible radiation coming from the phone.
For an in-depth look at this topic, please view the following video:
So once again, if you ride with you phone in your jersey pocket, please consider putting the phone in your seat pack or turn the phone off. It's up to you if you want to ignore this advice, but this seems like a relatively simple change you could make to minimize the risk of some potentially awful health problems in the future.
Then you should seriously consider different healthcare professionals. Non-ionizing radiation doesn't strongly correlate to cancer in humans.
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/the...es-and-cancer/
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/a-d...s-and-science/
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/cel...cer-revisited/
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/cel...cancer-center/
This has been a perennial fear of woo-mongers for over a decade. It is unfounded.
"Refreshingly Unconcerned With The Vulgar Exigencies Of Veracity "
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Text (email, apps, etc) passed voice data a decade ago. More and more, the "phone" isn't a phone - it's a tiny mobile computer. So, wouldn't it stand to reason - if cell phones are causing cancer - that we'd see the effects more closely tied to how they're used? Like testicular cancer from 14 hours/day in front pockets? Is "hand cancer" a thing? (only sorta kidding)
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RoadBikeReview Member
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Does a phone really put out much RF radiation when the phone isn't being used? I think not, as determined by how fast the battery is depleted.
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 Originally Posted by mfdemicco
Does a phone really put out much RF radiation when the phone isn't being used? I think not, as determined by how fast the battery is depleted.
Even if it DID...Non-ionizing radiation doesn't cause or correlate to cancer in humans.
There have been several hilarious instances where over-protective parents were certain their kids were sick due to a cell-tower near the school....and the telecom had to tell the parents that the tower in question had been down for maintenance and not even turned on. This has become such a thing that even in the complete absence of scientific evidence, schools and communities are putting restrictions on how near towers can be to schools....or demanding they be taken down for making kids sick--which they do not and cannot do.
Of course, the 5G hysteria is only making this farcical commentary on our society even worse and even more common.
"Refreshingly Unconcerned With The Vulgar Exigencies Of Veracity "
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RoadBikeReview Member
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I've heard over the years that there are groups of people whose critical thinking skills are significantly diminished by reading published nonsense on a regular basis.
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 Originally Posted by Marc
Even if it DID...Non-ionizing radiation doesn't cause or correlate to cancer in humans.
There have been several hilarious instances where over-protective parents were certain their kids were sick due to a cell-tower near the school....and the telecom had to tell the parents that the tower in question had been down for maintenance and not even turned on. This has become such a thing that even in the complete absence of scientific evidence, schools and communities are putting restrictions on how near towers can be to schools....or demanding they be taken down for making kids sick--which they do not and cannot do.
Of course, the 5G hysteria is only making this farcical commentary on our society even worse and even more common.
And of course there's the "power lines cause cancer" "study" that correlated living near power lines with cancer. But it turns out when they actually measured the radiation levels in the homes - no correlation. The cancer correlated with poverty, which of course correlates with living near power lines. Ignorance and fear mongering know no limits.
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On the other hand, mortality rates when you have a failure to maintain rubber side down and end up broken and immobile off course and away from your bike are likely far lower by being able to summon help with your phone.
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 Originally Posted by Kerry Irons
And of course there's the "power lines cause cancer" "study" that correlated living near power lines with cancer. But it turns out when they actually measured the radiation levels in the homes - no correlation. The cancer correlated with poverty, which of course correlates with living near power lines. Ignorance and fear mongering know no limits.
Add to that, when they surveyed those who work at power companies (those who work close to power lines all day), they didn't find correlation with cancer.
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The most dangerous phone to me is the one in the hands of the careless driver texting on it.
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 Originally Posted by Retro Grouch
The most dangerous phone to me is the one in the hands of the careless driver texting on it.
^THIS^
I have a client in TX who's cracked the code on broadcasting electricity. Really. They can send electricity from one tower (called "probes") to another without wires... over very long distances. Can you imagine the hysteria that'll come with the implementation of these systems. It'll make power lines and cell towers seem like windmills... oh... wait... those cause ear cancer. But you know what I mean.
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RoadBikeReview Member
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 Originally Posted by PoorInRichfield
Safety & Regulatory Information document states:
Note that all mobile phones have similar safety documents, you probably just don't know it because it's buried somewhere and never talked about.
Note what the quote says: "at a distance of 1.0 cm from your body". Who carries their phone that far from their body? When it's in your pocket or next to your ear, it's 0.0 cm from your body! In other words, in order to meet government standards, cell phone companies test their phones at distances from the body that do not represent the distance the average consumer carries a phone from his or her body.
Thanks. I pulled up your site link and saw this:
Safety of radio frequency emissions: Your phone emits radio frequency energy during use. According to the USA Federal Communications Commission (FCC): “Some health and safety interest groups have interpreted certain reports to suggest that wireless device use may be linked to cancer and other illnesses, posing potentially greater risks for children than adults. While these assertions have gained increased public attention, currently no scientific evidence establishes a causal link between wireless device use and cancer or other illnesses.”
So I guess no biggie
scott s.
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RoadBikeReview Member
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Thanks for your replies, guys, and the article links are interesting. My point was not to be a "fear monger", but to error on the side of caution for almost no change in your daily lifestyle (i.e., putting your phone in your bike big vs. your pocket shouldn't ruin your day.)
If you're confident that mobile phone use couldn't possibly cause cancer, then disregard this post and consider me a fool (I won't disagree with you on that! ;-) )
Apparently I'm far more of a skeptic than the rest of you. History has shown that the general public has on more than one occasion been told that various products "pose no health risks" or are "healthy for you", only to eventually find out years later that such claims were heavily influenced by lobbyists and $$$ (and possibly ignorance), but not your best interest.

Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and a long list of other tech giants would have a lot to lose if it was ever exposed that there is direct link between mobile phone use and health issues. I like their products (and one of them pays my salary indirectly), but I don't trust any of those companies with my personal health.
Obviously, my skepticism proves nothing, but I'll continue to keep my mobile phone away from my body as much as reasonably possible and avoid the risk that apparently doesn't exist (so we're being told today.) For those of you who think this is all alarmism, I hope you're right.
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 Originally Posted by Retro Grouch
The most dangerous phone to me is the one in the hands of the careless driver texting on it.
Agreed. Although you can't control what other people do with their phones, but you can control what you do with yours.
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Never, ever store you phone in your intergluteal cleft. For reasons other than the radiation thing.
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I work in a handset lab surrounded by hundreds of phones that are constantly running call tests.
I feel fine
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RoadBikeReview Member
Reputation:
Reminds me of the movie "Cell"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCns4w3GA9A
I think the biggest health threat from cell phones will be bad backs and neck strains. You see how folks are always hunched over looking at the phones and walking around like Zombies on the phone. I call them Phone Zombies.
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I can't see how putting a phone in my jersey pocket can be any worse for me than putting it in my pants pocket when I'm not riding which is many more hours a day than I ride.
Gravel Rocks
Trek Domane
Niner RLT9 (Gravel Bike)
BH G7 Disc
Trek Crockett
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RoadBikeReview Member
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Thank you, OP. I’ve just been starting to learn about the dangers of EMF and it’s amazing to me that we don’t hear more about it. I, too, often have carried my phone in my jersey pocket. I will definitely be switching to airplane mode before doing that in the future.
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my cell phone is rarely anywhere near me...not addicted to it.
I ride almost every day, it might be in a jersey pocket once a month.
Ancient Astronaut theorists say, 'YES!'
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 Originally Posted by PoorInRichfield
Thanks for your replies, guys, and the article links are interesting. My point was not to be a "fear monger", but to error on the side of caution for almost no change in your daily lifestyle (i.e., putting your phone in your bike big vs. your pocket shouldn't ruin your day.)
If you're confident that mobile phone use couldn't possibly cause cancer, then disregard this post and consider me a fool (I won't disagree with you on that! ;-) )
Apparently I'm far more of a skeptic than the rest of you. History has shown that the general public has on more than one occasion been told that various products "pose no health risks" or are "healthy for you", only to eventually find out years later that such claims were heavily influenced by lobbyists and $$$ (and possibly ignorance), but not your best interest.
Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and a long list of other tech giants would have a lot to lose if it was ever exposed that there is direct link between mobile phone use and health issues. I like their products (and one of them pays my salary indirectly), but I don't trust any of those companies with my personal health.
Obviously, my skepticism proves nothing, but I'll continue to keep my mobile phone away from my body as much as reasonably possible and avoid the risk that apparently doesn't exist (so we're being told today.) For those of you who think this is all alarmism, I hope you're right.
No...you're not a skeptic, you're promoting conspiracy theories. That crazy man in the trailer claiming that alien lizard people control the Queen of England and thereby the financial industry....you're one of him. A skeptic looks at evidence. Actual evidence and actual science like I linked. You're making up stories based off cynicism.
 Originally Posted by ttrider10
Thank you, OP. I’ve just been starting to learn about the dangers of EMF and it’s amazing to me that we don’t hear more about it. I, too, often have carried my phone in my jersey pocket. I will definitely be switching to airplane mode before doing that in the future.
What is amazing...isn't that we don't hear more about (we hear too much about it, being a non=issue)...but that people time and again fall for the same foolishnes and quackery and talk themselves into thinking they're learning anything other than quackery. As always if you have an insecurity, there's conmen willing to sell you a panacea.
Here, go buy some alkalinized water, after you learn about how you've been "poisoning" yourself with regular old H2O.
Last edited by Marc; 10-12-2019 at 03:44 PM.
"Refreshingly Unconcerned With The Vulgar Exigencies Of Veracity "
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 Originally Posted by Kerry Irons
And of course there's the "power lines cause cancer" "study" that correlated living near power lines with cancer. But it turns out when they actually measured the radiation levels in the homes - no correlation. The cancer correlated with poverty, which of course correlates with living near power lines. Ignorance and fear mongering know no limits.
The perils of not understanding the difference between correlation and causation... So damn common.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart...cks-180971119/
To date, philosophers have merely interpreted the world in various ways. The point however is to change it.
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 Originally Posted by OldZaskar
I have a client in TX who's cracked the code on broadcasting electricity.
This "breakthrough"has been around for decades in one form another. I'd keep a close eye on my wallet if I were you. It's possible, but not practical.
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RoadBikeReview Member
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I do not keep my cell in my jersey for one reason: sweat! You can work around this by wrapping in a plastic bag. I keep it in my saddle bag.
Jim D
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 Originally Posted by Kerry Irons
This "breakthrough"has been around for decades in one form another. I'd keep a close eye on my wallet if I were you. It's possible, but not practical.
My wallet was happy with the 5-digit fee the company paid. ;-)
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