Cell phones have been proven to be dangerous; how young is too young for a cell phone?

Question

These days everyone from Grandmas to 10 yr olds have cell phones. (If you want to know where your 10 year old child is; well he's right where you dropped him off!! Where else would he be?)

I think the cell phone craze (family packages, unlimited minutes & grade schoolers with phones) is unnecessary hype! And don't get me started on cost! And phone manners!

First off; cell phones are dangerous. The cell phone makers don't want you to know that cell phones have been PROVEN to cause many cancers. http://www.rense.com/general63/FACTS.HTM

Yes, you can lessen the dangers by using a handsfree device, but.... the younger (child, teenage) user is less likely to keep track of a cell phone PLUS accessories, much less use the headset consistently.

Add to that how much a teenager talks on the phone & it adds up to GREAT RISK!

So, what is the age when a young person has so much going on that you're willing to risk their health to know where they are at every minute of the day??

Answer 1

cellphones at ten is crazy!

i myself am a fan of the firefly device

it has only three possible calls

mom

dad

911

for a ten year old that should be all that you need

but when the child gets to about 14 and actulally starts going places without you then they need a cell phone

maybe a go phone would even work

Answer 2

whats ur question?

Answer 3

I do agree that it seems everyone has a cell these days... That said, I would like to explain why my son had one when he turned 8... I am sure there are a few others who did it for the same reason. My son's father hasn't ever really been in his life consistently, but when he turned 7 he began to be around more and was constantly asking to take him somewhere... Rather than try to get ahold of his dad when he had him I wanted to be able to call my son. We had code words if he wanted me to come get him, and it was easier if his dad didn't always know when I was calling him or he was calling me. I realize that a phone definitely isn't a babysitter, but I do feel probably a false sense of security, that it is in his pocket when we are in a store or park. I would never leave him alone, but it just makes me feel better when he has it. He is 9 now, and most of the time his phone is off in his room, he doesn't talk to hardly anyone, aside from me on it  :) If his dad hadn't come around though, he wouldn't have had one.. and his dad is gone again. Thankfully the phone doesn't cost anything extra on my plan... So that's it ... one of the countless reasons why a parent might get their younger child a cell :)

Answer 4

i think 9 and up are good ages

Answer 5

I got my phone when I entered high school.

it was easier to get in touch since you start athletics and clubs and all that nonsense

but I've seen infanit clothes at Target with cell phone pockets... that's definitely too young.

Answer 6

All I can say to that is that I 100% agree, and I think when you can pay for it yourself is the age when you should have one

Answer 7

My husband and I don't have cell phones, so I don't think my kids will be getting one anytime soon. I have seen kids on cell phones at my children's elementary school. A friend of mine gave her 10 year old a cell phone for emergencies, he father would drop her off at school at 7am (no supervision at that time, which he knows) In that case it's different. she needs to be able to call her mom to come and get her.

Answer 8

I got my first fone when I was abot 12 mainly because I didn't want one before that and when I did I bought it ,with pocket money I had saved, second hand off my older sister.

Answer 9

Cell phones are for conformists. I am the only person in the US that has never owned one.  Remember 10 years ago when everyone made fun of people with cells? That was great. Kids don't need phones. Who's going to call them? The other kids they see at school everyday? Or the creepy pedophile posing as a 10 year old girl they met online? If you give a phone to a kid because you don't know where they are, you don't need to have kids. It seems like this generation of parents are dissconnected with their children. They should be with their kids and doing activities with them, rather than dropping them off and wondering where they might be. Ahhh, gees....

Answer 10

Have you finished ranting now? You child is proven to be more at risk from cancer due to the traffic polution from all those cars taking kids everywhere rather than letting them walk or get a bus.

How old a child "should" be to have a mobile phone is up to nobody but the parents/ guardian, and many factors relate to individual families' circumstances.

Who died and made you the god of when my kid should/ should not do or have anything?

Answer 11

ever hear of a method called checking the creditability of your sources?  thats not true, cell phones do not cause cancer, the frequency of the waves they emit are too low to cause cancer,  microwaves are low frequency radio waves, so with all the radio waves surrounding us 24/7 we would all be dead, children would be born with leukemia, everyone would get leukemia by that web sites logic.  The US military has developed a "laser" that fires microwaves that only cause all of our pain receptors to go off.  If it was proven to cause cancer the government wouldn't be able to develop a non-lethal weapon like that due to the public outcry.

Answer 12

I am 21 yrs old and never have and never will get a cell phone nor will I ever purchase one for my 2 kids or my 3rd that i am 6 weeks pregnant with! It is an utter waste of time money hearing and healthy cells. No different than the 150 dollar pair of jeans all the teens want...just another silly thing to obsess over and blow your money on. NEVER in my book. But if they want one at 18 thats their choice.

EDIT*** as for knowing where your kid is....omfg!How would you NOT know where your kids is?!?!?! Using a cell phone as a babysitter is the same as abandoning them somewhere. You are supposed to be with your kid or have another kids parents present! Some people seriously need to re evaluate the responsibility of being a parent!

Edit again!*** I grew up in Las Vegas Nv, you know sin city....hahahaha...so the whole "big city" reasoning that people often use doesnt hold up either.

Answer 13

I don't think u need to worry about cell phones & cancer or even who is too young to use a cell phone. For the record, my Ma has always had an extremely healthy life- no toxin's that we know of & no cell phones- but has recently been diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma. A rare, non-curable cancer that is not genetic. So, not 2 sound like a total ***- but basically.....cell phones are here not only 4 communication, but 2 keep close contact(big brother). As convenient as they are (and maybe toxic) they are the future, no holds on communication or even tracking. Sorry Sweetie, get used 2 it.      : )

Answer 14

My family doctor says wait until there 14 and give them a phone! Because why does a 10 year need a phone?????

Answer 15

Kids just have them to be cool

Answer 16

Your other arguments aside, how do you imagine that cell phone manufacturers could possibly suppress medical "facts" concerning the potential for phones causing cancer?  Just because something appears on the Internet doesn't make it a "fact", even if it says "facts" in the address!  Cell phones have been around for some years now, and are pandemic, and yet people are not dropping dead in droves from brain cancer, are they?  In short, the claim that they cause cancer is hogwash.

Answer 17

First off, cell phones are NOT dangerous and they do NOT cause cancer.   Total media hype.  

Second, a cell phone is not a babysitter that replaces knowing where your child is, but it is a useful and time-saving device if used appropriately.  I got my daughters cell phones when they were in sixth grade.  At that point, they started playing school sports, and occasionally had "away games."  It was impossible to know what time their games would be over, and when their buses would return to their own school.  Since I am a single parent of three, it saved me TREMENDOUS time and effort if they called me on their cell phones when they were almost back at school, and I could run up and get them right away instead of spending 45 minutes in the parking lot waiting for them to get back.

A cell phone can also be a godsend when your children are in high school.   If your child is out with friends, and the driver has had a couple of drinks, it makes it 100% easy for your child to call you and say, "Please pick me up, Mom."

Both of my older daughters have been very responsible with their cell phones.  They do not go over their "minutes," and they use them appropriately.