I’ve heard rumors for years that cell phones could possible be linked to cancer. According to this TIME ARTICLE I read yesterday, at least one doctor actually thinks they do!
The head of a prominent cancer research institute issued an unprecedented warning to his faculty and staff Wednesday: Limit cell phone use because of the possible risk of cancer.
The warning from Dr. Ronald B. Herberman, director of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, is contrary to numerous studies that don’t find a link between cancer and cell phone use, and a public lack of worry by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Sounds like a bunch of hogwash to me. But just in case, I might start using my hands free device.
I’m not too worried about getting cancer from my phone, but I am focused on reducing the “noise” it creates in my life.
I’m very excited to announce that starting this weekend I will not be getting work emails on my phone for the first time in years! Planning on making this a habit from here on out. Just one more step toward reducing the noise so I can become the person I feel God is calling me to be.
While we are talking about cell phones, I’ve got a couple of questions.
1) What kind of cell do you have? (I have an iphone)
2) How many minutes a day (on average) do you spend on your cell? (I talk about 90 minutes a day, usually in the car)
I have a Blackberry Pearl. I am on it about 90 minutes a day as well.
I love that you ask questions! I love the interaction! Each morning I enjoy your blog along with Brandiandboys too! I’m a stay-at-home Mom and I don’t use mine a whole lot. It’s a chocolate I think and Eric got it for me a few years ago. I like it when I need to multi-task. I’ve been debating the new iphone and getting the internet/mail on it, but I’m worried I’d spend to much time on it
! Blessings to you and your family today!
@Emily Rowe, I guarantee you will spend too much time on it!
iPhone!!! Yay iPhone!!!!
And I don’t spend too much time talking on it but if you include email, text, internet browsing, fussing with the calender and address book in that number, I probably spend anywhere from 1 to 2 hours on the iPhone… alot of that sitting on the bus while listening to podcasts.
Though there are the rare days when I don’t pick it up at all.
Go multi-tasking!
Don’t know what kind I have. One of those pay as you go deals. I wouldn’t have it at all, but it was given as a gift when I was doing lots of traveling. I currently don’t know where it is. Don’t remember the last time I talked on it. We take it on trips (if we remember). Blogging is a big enough addiction.
I have a palm centro. I dont talk much on my phone, but I text alot.
I finally upgraded to a Motorola flip phone.. I dont even know the name of it. I am like you Pete and only really used my cell when I am to and from a destination. I would probably say I am on my cell a total of 60-70mins a day.
@ Michael.. Dude I hear ya..blogging is an addiction..
I didn’t have one until this week ( I figure Marc and the kids have one…so why do I need one since most of the time I am with one of them). Well I guess that got on their nerves because this week I was given a pay as you go phone (lol). No bells and whistles, which is a good thing because I stink at using that stuff ( especially text messages). Twitter, facebook and bloglines (don’t ask how many blogs I follow) keep enough “noise” going on in my life anyway.
good for you pete. i stopped emails to my phone about 6 months ago and haven’t looked back. i have a blackjack and spend about 30 minutes a day talking. way more texting these days instead of talking.
SO HAPPY FOR YOU!
I have a blackberry pearl but it doesn’t do anything but sit in my purse or get lost. I probably spend a good 5 minutes on it a day unless my mom calls.
iPhone. I don’t talk on it much. But I am messing with it constantly. Its like my hand goes on auto-pilot when the phone is near. I just can’t help myself. I think its has a better chance of causing me to get carpal tunnel
I am definitely addicted. I have a BlackBerry Curve. I spend just a few minutes talking, and probably too much time blogging, reading, emailing, message boarding, surfing, and twittering. I only share my integrated email with a few people. On my days off, I really don’t use my phone that much. It helps pass my 13 hours of doing next to nothing at work, like right now. Don’t worry though, I do not steal company time.
I just got a Blackberry Curve. And its awesome, I must add. I talk on my phone ALOT. My Hubs and I spend lots of hours a week on the contraption. Then with the kids and family memebers on the same network as us. When I am driving I spend alot of time on it making the calls I did not get to all day while I was trapped to the office phone. Get the pic? I live with a phone attached to my ear.
A regular faded samsung phone, don’t do too much talking on it. More texting.
The phone I do want is the new 3g Iphone!!!
I’ve got a Blackberry 8830 WE.
Talking, not a whole lot, but I get my email and do web searching, facebook, and twitter on it.
Getting email on the phone has kept me off the computer at home as much as I used to be, although it’s still probably a bit much.
I have a cheapie pre-paid from Walmart that my SIM card goes in, b/c I keep dropping phones in the pool, bathtub, etc. So I go for cheap now! Time on it varies whether I’m out running around or at home, where I use my home phone. No much, though!
I have an LG enV. I’d say my average daily use is maybe 15 min. Mostly I use it for texting – phone calls are really only with my mom and my sister, or Greg if he’s out of town.
I have a Sony Erickson Walkman Phone (Don’t know the model #)
On average I probably spend 60 minutes a day on it. My wife and I share an unlimited plan, so we use it many times instead of our home phone.
Palm Treo 700. It’s my brain. Talk maybe 60 min a day but I do alot of texting…. and alot of email.
At most? 5 minutes a day.
Texting or meeting in person.
just got the new 3G iPhone. I used my old Treo a lot but now, it’s out of control: facebook, twitter, maps, google, games, emails, text messages. I need an intervention!
i have a Sprint Phone and i am on it as little as possible…..
I am more addicted to email, Drudge, MySpace…. I just connected to Plaxo.com… It is an adult (business not porn) Myspace i was invited to join… I was just wondering how popular it is and if it was worth getting on…. I have already found some adult friends around the country I have not seen on Myspace or facebook……
Are there any Plaxo people out there???
I have a Blackberry Pearl, I’m on it more for emails when I’m out of the house, probably 2 hours a day or so?
I am on my phone way too much, if I leave it at home, I have to go back and get it or I panic. now that is BAD! I just have some sprint phone, I don’t email on it ’cause I do that enough other places. I talk on the phone while I drive but now in our state there is a fine so I have to be more sneaky err careful I mean.
you would have an iphone.
not sure what kind mine is but i talk way to much on it.
I have an iPhone. I spend more time browsing the internet and texting than talking.
I have a basic Samsung flip phone. I use it for phone calls only and average about 3 to 5 minutes per day. The only reason I have a phone: so family can reach me if they have an emergency. Otherwise, we chat online or through e-mail. So NOT addicted and I hope to keep it that way.
I have the Palm Treo 750 Smart Phone, so I do get email on it and web. I do this for business, since I’m in Real Estate and can’t miss a thing! I probably average an hour per day talking on the phone, and it is mostly business related. But I love the email capabilities, because that actually cuts down my talk time, tremendously.
I have a Palm Centro, but I want an iPhone, and I am getting one too!!! I am on the phone a ton but I couldn’t tell you how long. I do most of my work from my phone. I wouldn’t call it an addiction as much as a necessity. This is the world we live in. We just have to be able to manage the “noise” it causes.
I’m with you on the cancer “hogwash” but I have a samsung flip phone, and I got it because it didn’t have an antenna for me to break off, and a camera, I’d never had a cameraphone until about 2 years ago, but sadly, only realized I could actually email the pictures to myself, nooooooooobody told me, and I’m as bad as a man when it comes to reading directions! I’m not on my phone much, I text more than talk, usually, and I really don’t talk but maybe 20 minutes a day, if my parents call.
I’m not a big cell phone user, but my husband is… especially texting!!! We both have the Sprint Palm Centro (mine is pink and his is black) and I think it’s funny that he doesn’t know anyone’s phone number off the top of his head. He has to toggle down thru his phone when he wants to call someone. The bad thing is, he was having trouble with the phone the other day and took it into a Sprint store to see if they could help him. They helped him alright… by erasing EVERYTHING that was in the phone… emails, texts, videos, pictures, and his 150+ contact list. They didn’t tell him they had erased it, so he found out when he got back in the car and was getting ready to call someone who was in his contact list. Needless to say, he is lost right now.
i just replaced my ghetto phone with a Samsung music slider. but i don’t know why i have a cell phone sometimes. some days it doesn’t ring at all, others it’s ringing like crazy, and i don’t have texting enabled. im more addicted to email, facebook, and myspace. since those were created, the phone just seems obsolete to a lot of people. i personally like talking on the phone better than facebooking or texting.
I have a new iPhone…I had the old one…I definitely spend way to much time on it. Not only on the phone but checking e-mails and using the internet. My husband and I are taking a vacation in a few weeks out of the country where I will not be able to even have it on…should be a good break for me and hopefully I can make the using less a habit!
@ Giant Idiot, yes we all know what kind of phone you have!
@ Maurilio, how about for an intervention I just come over and take your new 3G away from you!
Pete, I can’t believe how much traffic you get from questions like ice cream and phones…cool.
I have an LG Voyager and I love it. I don’t use the phone part very much at all, but I text all the time. Our daughter’s are deaf, so it’s a way to communicate with them when I am not home, but the whole family uses the texting way to much. Sometimes we text when we are in the same room:) I don’t think it’s an addiction, but perhaps a distraction.
I have… I don’t even know. Motorola something. Half the time you have to use the speaker phone function to hear anything so I bet I’m not going to end up with brain cancer. Of course the brain cancer thing has been going around for a while. Apparently you get some kind of tumor right above your ear – where the cell phone radiates. Also if you wear your cell phone on your waistband….you can end up with a tumor there too. It makes sense. It’s not “brain science” hahahaha … couldn’t help myself.
I don’t know how much I talk on my phone. Not as much as others I bet. I don’t even know where it is right now. Some days I run the battery down and other times I can go for days on end without even remembering about it.
I do want a cool phone for texting though. I think texting is cool but then, I will have to learn a whole new language and since I can’t get college credit for that, I don’t know if it will be worth my brain energy.
I used to say “the Lord works in mysterious ways.” He does not!
Lately, little things like this blog have helped me see the everyday signs, not coincidences, that God gives me.
Thank you, Pete. TODAY, I was going to upgrade my phone and start recieving e-mail on it. Why? So, that I can be distracted while I should be taking care of my sick wife. WORK CAN WAIT!
Blackberry Curve and a Motorola Razor.
I talk about 10 minutes a day on both of them combined…
The Blackberry for e-mail, RSS feeds, Internet, is another story…
The Blackberry is work, and I am in IT Support, and a Blackberry Admin… I wish I could run from it. I am trying to get better about leaving it at home when out with the family.
Nokia 6300.
About 15 minutes.
No internet/email etc.
@Jody, Proud of you man! Hang in there and please know we’re all praying for Karen.
I have a Motorola (V262, I think) flip phone that is scratched up and falling apart. Almost every time I pick it up, the battery cover comes off. If I drop it (again) it will probably be the end of it. I used to talk on it a lot during the school year because I was driving here, there and everywhere. This summer I have averaged about 400 minutes/month.
I’m skeptical about cell phones causing cancer. I kinda feel like they’ve been around long enough that we’d be seeing quite a bit of evidence. But, what do I know? I’m no scientist.
i have one of those old school nokia phones. and spend maybe 15 minutes a week on it – mainly because i have no one to talk to. it is amazing how cheap they are here. i pay $3 (u.s. dollars) a month.
I have a Blackberry and do not get internet or email on my phone. I bought it because it was $30. So I pretty much have a blackberry for no reason.
Pete, I think that’s awesome that you took your email off your phone. I really admire that. One of the things I enjoy about you is that you put into practice the things you are telling us on Sunday mornings. I really think that’s why people relate to you so well. Thanks for what you do!
I have the ATT Tilt..I finally upgraded from the “free” phones. I enjoy the new phone, but I still like and miss my Nokia that I had.
As for how much time on the cell… Well, I finally deleted my house phone…I didn’t use it. Therefore, my use has went up due to that plus texting…
3gIPhone. I read blogs, answer emails from work, Twitter, do real work, talk, surf…you name it, I probably do it. About 2 hours plus a day. I know….way too much. But it does make life easier.
- i have a new iPhone 3G…and loving it (also decided not to get work email on it!)
- only 10 mins/day talk time. sometimes i forget that my iPhone is atually a phone.
Palm Centro (and of course, its pink)
According to my statement, I only talk on the phone, maybe 25 minutes a day on average. I use it mostly for email and other data – WAY more than talking on.
I have a Motorola KRZR and spend, maybe, an hour a day on it. Um. Let’s not ask about texting, though. K?
Pete I forgot to mention that I have the 3G iPhone.
@Giant Idiot, Thanks for the clarification…jerk!
i have the centro…i really do like it, but i keep having these dreams that my sweet husband is going to surprise me with the new iphone for my birthday next month!
LG enV2 – due to poor reception for iPhone carrier…they need to go Verizon for me
most of my time is now spent texting…talking maybe 10-15 minutes a day
I have a Sony Ericsson and I don’t use it much as in Europe, cell phones are EXPENSIVE especially the minutes. Pretty much is just for emergencies. That is a big change from a year ago when I lived in America, I used all the time. I want an IPHONE
I just got rid of my cellphone. I thought I’d go through serious withdrawal, but I didn’t. I use email and my office voice mail a lot more.
WaxyOne you best watch what you say or it could get ugly at your hearse tonight.
Samsung i760 PDA Smartphone. (I want an iphone but cannot use it with my work software…aaaarrrrrgggghhh)
Minutes a day—-LOTS. It is my work phone so my chance of cancer is probably multiplied.
And Pete, I try and keep my cell off on weekends as well. You will find it amazing that everything is still there on Monday morning. Wierd how that happens. Good move
I have the LG Rumor. I really could care less about any of the perks. I only got that one because my 12yr old was with me when I had to replace my broken one. (in hopes that I would pass it on to her) I talk maybe 30-45 minutes a day. Mostly to B and B. I don’t really care about cell phones and the newest technology but I can’t tell you how many times I have turned around to go back home and get it when I realized i left it there. Convenience or necessity? Not sure??
I use an AT&T Tilt and I love it! Between phone and email/web I am on it probably a couple hours a day. The cool thing about it to me is being able to use it wherever I am at instead of being tied down to a desk or office.
I do, however, agree that it can become addictive to be disconnected. That’s to me why disconnection needs to be a regular practice.
Treo 750 – not too many minutes except for business but TONS of texts and TONS of emails.
Phones are very addictive. I used to work for Sprint (don’t hold it against me) and I saw people do some really crazy things when they were faced with the reality of having to wait for their phone to be replaced or repaired. Not pretty.
Thakfully, I forget to charge mine up.
http://spadinofamily.wordpress.com/2008/07/25/the-theology-of-rocky-balboa/
I wasn’t so much until about a month ago. I traded in my Krazor for a Blackberry Curve and I love it. Email, text, calls. i spend about 60-90 mins. a day using it in one fashion or another.
I have a motorolla krzr…it’s red & I like red. I spend quite a bit of time on it. All of my family is long distance-2 to 3 hrs away. We don’t have long distance in the land line so it’s off to the cell I go. Good thing that most have the same carrier. The time on it…uh …too much esp today.
@brandiandboys…you have that dream too?
I’m enjoying reading your blogs!! I love being able to participate in the conversation!!
I have a Blackberry Curve. I spend maybe an hour or so a day on it because it’s usually shorter conversations, but several different people calling me with technology issues from work. I also have my home email address forwareded to it so it’s always buzzing with emails coming in!!
Pete, this is almost freaky. A few hours ago, I wrote about this very thing on my blog. I titled the post “Keepin’ it Balanced”.
It seems I had found myself struggling with that fine line between staying informed and being over-connected.
I have a Blackberry Curve. I’ve had it for a few months now. I am embarrassed to admit how much I sit and stare at it’s tiny screen, scrolling from screen to screen. I’m not a big “phone talker” these days, but I’m big on internet, messaging, email, etc.
I am SO close to closing down the work email to the phone … at least at nights and on weekends.
And as for the “cancer” connection through cell phones? I’m like you – not sure how real it is, but I’m all about protecting myself. So I’m planning to use my hands-free more often.
Now, I need to figure out how to stop reading blogs at midnight on a Saturday!!!
my phone is more of a camera to me than a phone right now. I probably spend an average of 10min a week on my phone.
I should call my parents more…
Are you kidding me???? Addicted to a phone???? I can’t believe you….oh….my iPhone’s ringing, gotta go.
i cant stand talking on the phone. i have a blackberry and i dont even like it. it has a great camera tho, i use it every day. and i barely ever answer my phone either. part of the problem is i love my ringtone too much so i’ll let it ring as long as possible so i can hear the whole ringtone…then…i usually end up missing a call. my ringtone is Brick House! ohyesitis!