Experts will study whether equipment used to block access to foreign-based TV channels could cause cancer

Iran's health ministry has set up a committee to investigate whether the state's jamming of satellite signals could pose a health risk to citizens.

Foreign-based TV channels have been blocked for years in Iran, and there are growing fears that the equipment used could cause cancer.

The minister for health and medical education, Hassan Hashemi, told the state news agency Irna on Tuesday that the president, Hassan Rouhani, had asked officials to study whether jamming TV signals could pose a health risk.

"The committee's experts team include representatives from the communications ministry as well as the country's atomic energy organisation and other relevant departments," he said. "They have total freedom in their investigation and if they find out any issues, they will announce them.

"The initial reports show that jamming signals pose no physical harm but the committee needs to carry out its investigation thoroughly. Rumours are widespread about jamming's effects and consequences on people's health but most of the rumours have no scientific basis."

Although satellite receiving dishes are illegal, millions of Iranians watch satellite channels to keep up with programmes that are often banned on the state-run television, such as singing competitions or western music videos.

Police often mount raids on apartment blocks to find and destroy satellite dishes, but Rouhani has taken a softer line. Shortly after he was elected as president last year, he made clear that he opposed harsh crackdowns by the police. "In the age of digital revolution, one cannot live or govern in a quarantine," he said.

But a decision on whether the ban should be lifted is not solely in the hands of the government. The elite Revolutionary Guards, close to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and its Basij voluntary militia are particularly worried about people's unrestricted access to foreign channels.

The authorities often step up the jamming at times of political unrest or internal bickerings. In the aftermath of the disputed elections in 2009, when millions of Iranians poured on to streets in protest at the results, Iran extensively jammed news channels such as BBC's Persian service and Voice of America's Persian network.

Hashemi, an ophthalmologist, was appointed as health minister by Rouhani in August. His appointment was hailed by doctors and experts who see him as someone with a realistic approach to Iran's health problems.

In December, Hashemi complained about the taboo surrounding people with HIV in Iran and said the number of people infected with the disease had dramatically increased.