Have you ever wondered when today's smartphones are toxic "> Specific Absorption Rate") and refers to the radiation exposure levels of electronic devices in general. 
In practice, the SAR is the measure of the radiation emitted by mobile phones and smartphones, the value of which indicates the electromagnetic energy absorbed by the human body when it enters the radio frequency (RF) electromagnetic field. Clearly, the higher this SAR value, the more it can harm our health.
Being an important parameter for measuring the effect of a device on human health, all phones leaving factories are subjected to a careful SAR assessment by the Federal Communications Commission ( FCC ) in the United States and CENELEC ( European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization ) in Europe.
These two agencies carry out all the necessary checks, based on a limit parameter: in fact the legal limit of SAR radiation for electronic devices in the USA is 1.6 watts per kilogram (W / kg) while in Europe it is 2 (W / kg) .
Effects of radiation on human health
What is known is that cell phones, as well as Wi-Fi routers, microwave ovens and any other electrical device (PC, monitor, notebook etc.), emit non-ionizing radiation whose main effect is heating . The level of warming has, theoretically and according to the agencies that study them (such as the International Agency for Research on Cancer), no impact on human health and is so low that it does not cause any visible damage in the short term. However, little is known about the long-term effects .
The SAR standards, however, have been developed to protect people from the acute effects of heat generated by microwave radiation, but do not take any account of any other non-thermal effects of cell phone radiation that can cause long-term exposure damage, including the risk of brain cancer, skin cancer and damage to hematopoietic tissue.
Although from the medical-scientific point of view there is no evidence that these radiations certainly cause damage, if the human body is exposed to electromagnetic fields for prolonged periods it cannot really be excluded that they can worsen our health or increase the percentage of incidence of cancer .
Of course, it is always better not to let children, babies and pregnant women use their mobile phones, as they absorb much more radiation than the average person.
List of smartphones with high SAR
Returning, however, to the SAR measurement of radiation, there is a legal minimum, it is obvious that all smartphones on sale are tested to remain below the safety threshold.Below we have collected the highest SAR values among all the smartphones registered by the MobileWorld site:
- Xiaomi Mi A1 : 1.75 W / kg
- OnePlus 5T : 1.68 W / kg
- Huawei Mate 9 : 1.64 W / kg
- Xiaomi Mi Max 3 : 1.58 W / kg
- ASUS ZenFone 6 : 1.57 W / kg
- OnePlus 6T : 1.55 W / kg
- Honor 8 : 1.5 W / kg
- Huawei P9 : 1.49 W / kg
- HTC U12 Life : 1.48 W / kg
- Huawei P9 Plus : 1.48 W / kg
In the following table we have collected the SAR values for the most famous smartphones on the market, with the highest value going down:
- Google Pixel 3 XL : 1.39 W / kg
- Xiaomi Mi 9 SE : 1, 385 W / kg
- OnePlus 7 Pro : 1, 199 W / kg
- Google Pixel 3a XL : 1.19 W / kg
- Apple iPhone XR / XS / XS Max : 0.99 W / kg
- Apple iPhone X : 0.87 W / kg
- Huawei P30 Pro : 0.64 W / kg
- Samsung Galaxy S10 + : 0.516 W / kg
- Huawei Mate 20 Pro : 0.4 W / kg
- Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ : 0.18 W / kg
From these lists it clearly emerges that the worst are dual SIM smartphones and Chinese smartphones, which in some cases present values well beyond the limits allowed in the United States (they still remain under the limits imposed by the European Union, that's why they can also be sold in Italy).
On the other hand, Samsung smartphones and iPhones are doing very well, which have SAR values in the norm for both the USA and Europe, with the Note 10+ to excel (the best smartphone, with very low SAR value).
Conclusions
In conclusion, knowing the SAR value for a smartphone matters little, both because they are all below the danger threshold for sale in Italy and because the SAR value, taking into account only the effects of heat caused by non-ionizing radiation, is not a value essential to understand if we will have health problems in the future (high SAR values do not mean insured cancer!). If we are particularly fond of this aspect or are hypochondriacs, it is better to choose one of the smartphones with a lower SAR value, knowing that this does not completely exclude from the health risks.Always on the subject of electromagnetic radiation, we invite you to read our guide . Is WiFi dangerous for us, children or babies "> Should I turn off my PC or mobile phone at night?
