Since the global telecommunications companies began installing antennas all around the world to provide their services, it has been a lot of controversy in the different societies because of the possible negative externalities that these kinds of devices could cause in the population.

A lot of people think that these machines are the main cause of a large number of diseases, like for example some types of cancer (specially in children). They think that the antennas emit high enough radiation that can affect the human health.

Many studies have identified an increased risk of leukaemia, brain tumours and other cancers in populations that live near high voltages lines and in different people that work in this kind of fields. Suspected stronger partnership has been established in children with leukaemia. People have also tried to relate the antennas activity to reproductive, neurological and cardiovascular disorders and foetal malformations.

In spite of this, although that there is no doubt that these devices exert biological effects, the role of non-ionizing radiation to cause cancer is controversial. It is thought that in any case the antennas could act as a tumour promoter, with little or no initial power to convert normal genes in cancer-causing genes. Mobile phone antennas emit a radio frequency beam horizontally and very closed which is approximately parallel to the ground. Given the small vertical beam width, the intensity of the radio frequency field on the ground directly below the antenna is small and decreases rapidly in distance from it. At any distance, the ground levels of RF fields from base stations are below the limits set by international guidelines for exposure of the general public.

Although the RF field levels around base stations are not considered a health risk, locating decisions should take into account aesthetics and public sensibilities. Locate, for example, base stations near kindergartens, schools or playgrounds may need special consideration. Free communication and discussion between the mobile operator and the public during the planning stages for a new antenna can help create greater public understanding and better acceptance of new facilities.

To conclude, it is important to underline that the different studies are contradictory, especially because of the difficulty of measuring exposure to ionizing radiation and no epidemiological and statistical methods used. Thus, there are many works in the opposite direction.