Scientists Warn That AirPods and Other Wireless Headphones Could Pose Cancer Risk

If you use Apple AirPods, scientists are urging you to take extra caution. A recent United Nations and World Health Organization petition has been sent out to warn against the potential dangers AirPods might cause, specifically to your inner skull.

“My concern for AirPods is that their placement in the ear canal exposes tissues in the head to relatively high levels of radio-frequency radiation,” says Jerry Phillips, a professor of biochemistry at the University of Colorado.

Additionally, there are concerns about the AirPods’ Bluetooth technology, a type of electromagnetic frequency (EMF) radiowave that can transmit data.

“Based upon peer-reviewed, published research, we have serious concerns regarding the ubiquitous and increasing exposure to EMF generated by electric and wireless devices,” the petition states. “Numerous recent scientific publications have shown that EMF affects living organisms at levels well below most international and national guidelines.”

As a result of the EMF exposure, the petition talks about how the AirPods could pose a risk to cancer, neurological disorders, and DNA damage. Additionally. the International Agency for Research on Cancer found that EMF is “possibly carcinogenic” to humans.

So far, about 250 experts have signed the petition. However, there are still plenty of experts who say AirPods won’t cause cancer–and aren’t really all that risky. According to the World Health Organization’s (WHO), the levels of EMF are within their guidelines of safety. 

Additionally, Kenneth Foster, a professor of bioengineering at the University of Pennsylvania, insists that when viewed in the whole, said the low-level EMF exposure shouldn’t cause any harm: “There are many thousands of papers of varying quality and relevance to health that point in all sorts of directions.”

But the petition is standing strong on their evidence: “The various agencies setting safety standards have failed to impose sufficient guidelines to protect the general public, particularly children who are more vulnerable to the effects of EMF,” the petition continued. “By not taking action, the WHO is failing to fulfill its role as the preeminent international public health agency.”

Do you use AirPods? Do you think that they can cause cancer and other health issues?