This paper shows the capability of the finite difference time domain (FDTD) method to predict the interaction between the human body and the electromagnetic field generated by a cordless telephone. Both the influence of the human head on the performance of the cordless telephone and the energy deposited in the human head have been determined. The interaction has been evaluated for a simple dipole model and for an accurate ''box'' model of the telephone. The FDTD method is a versatile method for refining the antenna model. The results show that the use of the accurate box model in combination with a realistic model of the head derived from a nuclear magnetic resonance image is a prerequisite for accurate determination of the near fields induced in the head. the total amount of power absorbed in the head has been compared to the radiated power. From our calculations we found that about 15% of the antenna input power at 900 MHz is absorbed in the head. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1995