~ Updated Sept 2020
How close is safe for you to carry your cell phone? Is this a question you even knew you needed to ask? If the answer is no, then you are not alone. Many consumers don’t realize there are explicit safety warnings typed in the fine-print within the safety manuals that come along with their cell phones.
This safe-distance concern provided the motivation behind the founding of SportPort in that there was a need to protect active cell phone users from the potentially harmful electromagnetic frequency and radiofrequency (EMF-RF) radiation emitted from their phones.
Storing cell phones in sports bras or on-body sport accessories while working out is common-place for people who want to keep their device with them. However, chances are most of these fitness-minded people haven’t read their cell phone manual detailing the recommended safe distance to carry their phone away from their body.
What is the Recommended EMF Safe-Distance for Your Cell Phone?
The recommended safe carrying distance is based on mandatory government testing and can vary per phone with most more commonly at 5mm away from the body to as much as 15mm away. See our "safe distance" graphic to know that it takes 25 sports bra layers to cover a 5mm distance and 75 sports bra layers to cover 15mm, while it takes only one SportPort sports bra because of it's patented EMF protective phone pocket design built-in!
Finding the EMF information, which is denoted in terms of SAR values (specific absorption rate values), can be confusing and hard to locate depending on the make and model of your cell phone. In an effort to aid this barrier, SportPort has created two separate guides to help both iPhone & Android cell phone users and allows for a quick, easy option to determine the recommended distance considered safe to carry your phone:
The significance of SportPort’s foresight on this important health matter was detailed in a 2017 press release, New Safe Distance Concerns for Cell Phone RF Exposure Credits SportPort Sportswear for Solutions.
Still wondering why this exposure should concern you? As described in a recent CBC article, “Radiofrequency radiation is waves generated by an electromagnetic field that transmit cell phone, radio and other signals. It has enough energy to set atoms vibrating and generate heat in fluids or body tissue but not as much as higher-energy radiation such as X-rays or UV light.” This physical reaction occurs whether you are aware of it or not and the fact that it is potentially harmful to your health should be enough to prompt you to take the cell phone out of your pocket.
Raising awareness on cell phone dangers is central to what drives SportPort, just as is providing a functional alternative for active cell phone storage. In line with this focus, SportPort is recognized as the first luxury athletic apparel company to design products with accessible pockets that offer a properly protective barrier between the user’s body and their cell phone. Not just any blocking or shielding pocket, SportPort products are designed effectively and have undergone Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) testing by an independent, accredited lab to ensure that their garments minimize the body’s exposure to RF radiation while allowing the phone to function when the phone is stored in the patented pocket. For an athlete who needs safe cell phone storage close to their body, as well as high quality compression and performance fabrics, they now have options thanks to the SportPort product line of athletic sports bras and tops.
Cell phone safety continues to be in the news with science studies unable to keep up with the speedy manufacturing of new, upgraded phones or phone service providers (eg: 5G cell service now). The hope is that this focus of concern will continue to raise awareness so people will start handling their devices in safer accordance to the FCC safety standards. To stay updated on the ongoing research and studies linked to cell phone safety, sign up for the SportPort newsletter.
All SportPort™ activewear garments are unique, signature designs, all Made in the USA. Our passion for excellence is what drives our brand! When you wear SportPort™ activewear, you know you are wearing an original, one of a kind garment engineered to perfection.
