If the story appeared in a supermarket tabloid you’d probably chuckle, shake your head, and then pay for your groceries. But when stories about compact fluorescent bulbs posing health risks turn up in Scientific American, you have to take notice.
Not to worry, says NRECA’s Cooperative Research Network.
But electric cooperatives will want to be aware of what’s going on, because some members are asking questions.
“About a year and a half ago, there were some reports in the European media that CFLs cause cancer and there was a university study. It was picked up by a lot of reputable media outlets in Europe and the United States,” said Brian Sloboda, CRN senior program manager.
“And then one day, a reporter called the university to interview the researcher. And the researcher said he had no clue because he’d never done any work like that. It was a total fabrication,” Sloboda explained.
Fast forward to July of this year, when Scientific American and others picked up on research conducted at the State University of New York at Stony Brook.
Sloboda said some co-ops received calls from members asking about this story, which suggested the university found some correlation between skin cells in a Petri dish and ultraviolet radiation emitted by some CFLs.
“The details are different,” said Sloboda, who took a closer look. “The simple answer is that there is, for most people, not too much to be concerned with.”
For starters, some of the cells used in the SUNY study are not normally exposed to sunlight. So it’s worth looking at research by others, including the Food and Drug Administration.
That found that while CFLs do produce UV light, it is a small amount “equivalent to just being outside in the sunlight for a minute or two,” Sloboda said. “So it doesn’t cause direct damage.”
The only eyebrow-raising finding by the FDA concerns people with pre-existing conditions, such as lupus, that cause the skin to be hyper-sensitive to UV light. And in those situations it’s only people who are “using the CFL very, very close to your skin for an extended period of time,” Sloboda said. “Most people are not doing that.” FDA recommends keeping the CFL at least a foot from your skin.
Co-ops can advise members to talk to their physician, and if they’re still worried, to buy LEDs which don’t emit UV light.
But Sloboda said the bottom line is: “You’re far more at risk for skin cancer by going outside and never using sunscreen for several years. That’s what puts you at risk—not having a CFL in a table lamp.”
By Michael W. Kahn | ECT Staff Writer via CFL Cancer Scare Debunked » Electric Co-op Today.
