Children who live near pylons do not have an increased risk of developing leukaemia, a new study indicates.

Electricity pylons, or overhead power lines, are a very contentious issue in Ireland at the moment due to plans by Eirgrid to upgrade and develop the electricity transmission network here. This will involve new power lines being introduced nationwide.

However, some people have major concerns about the potential health risks associated with these power lines. Others have concerns about issues such as the impact on the environment and property prices.

This latest study by the University of Oxford in the UK involved almost 16,500 children who were diagnosed with leukaemia in the UK between 1962 and 2008. 

Leukaemia is the most common cancer found in children in the developed world. It most often occurs in children aged betwen two and five.

Earlier research had indicated an increased risk among children who lived within 600 metres of a pylon. However, this study found that children born after the 1980s had no increased risk.

The researchers said that this ‘strongly suggests' that power lines do not affect the risk of childhood leukaemia.

They noted that the earlier findings could be due to problems with how the study was carried out, chance or changes in the characteristics of people living near pylons.

"It's very encouraging to see that in recent decades there has been no increased risk of leukaemia among children born near overhead power lines. More research is needed to determine precisely why previous evidence suggested a risk prior to 1980, but parents can be reassured from the findings of this study that overhead power lines don't increase their child's risk of leukaemia," commented lead author, Kathryn Bunch.

Details of these findings are published in the British Journal of Cancer.