RFK Jr. tells USA TODAY 5G towers for cellphone use 'a major health concern'
When asked about 5G towers, Kennedy cited studies suggesting links to cancer and tumor growth. But the World Health Organization found 'no connection between cellphone use and brain cancer.'
WASHINGTON – Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told USA TODAY that “electromagnetic radiation is a major health concern” a day after his department launched a study of cellphone radiation.
“Generally speaking, electromagnetic radiation is a major health concern,” Kennedy said in the exclusive interview, when asked for his concerns about 5G towers. “I’m very concerned about it.”
The department said 22 states had restricted cellphone use in schools to improve health of children under the "Make America Healthy Again" movement. Since 2022, there's been a significant push by K-12 schools nationwide to ban cell phone use in classrooms. But this is to curb mental health effects of social media, prevent cyberbullying and being online at all times, not EMF radiation.
Cell providers' 5G networks promise faster connections but have long been the target of skeptics who say they have negative health effects. USA TODAY has previously debunked online claims that 5G is dangerous.
The Food and Drug Administration under Kennedy has taken down old webpages saying cellphones are not dangerous.
"The FDA removed webpages with old conclusions about cell phone radiation while HHS undertakes a study on electromagnetic radiation and health research to identify gaps in knowledge, including on new technologies, to ensure safety and efficacy," said Andrew Nixon, a department spokesperson.
Kennedy elaborated on the health concerns in an exclusive interview for the USA TODAY series "Extremely Normal," describing what he said were “more than 10,000 studies” documenting ill effects from electromagnetic radiation including cancer, tumor growth and DNA damage.
“EMFs are bad depending on the pulse rates and the wave lengths,” Kennedy said. “Some of them are very bad.”
The World Health Organization found no justification for health concerns after commissioning a review where experts from nine countries analyzed 63 studies on cellphones and cancer dating from 1994 through 2022. The review was published in Environmental International, a scientific journal, in September 2024.
"The researchers found no connection between cellphone use and brain cancer," the WHO said.
Contributing: Reuters