ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS IN THE HOME
Facts you need to know about EMF's
When you awoke this morning, it was most likely to an electric alarm clock
placed next your bed, made breakfast and coffee using electrical appliances
like a coffee maker, toaster or microwave, perhaps watched the morning news
on television, used an electric shaver, toothbrush, or hair dryer and perhaps
spoke on a cordless phone.
Then you went out to your car (powered by hundreds of micro-computers),
opened your garage door with an electric opener, drove to work on roads strung
with power lines all along the way, stopped off for a snack at a store which
used an electronic bar coding scanner and talked on your cell phone again.
When you got to your office, you may have walked through automatic doors,
opened a door with an alarm system on it, turned on the overhead fluorescent
lights, powered up your computer, fax and printer and started to work. You
probably didn't notice the satellite dishes on the top of your building or
the electric substation in your neighborhood.
At the end of the day, we do the reverse order going home. Added to that,
we will probably watch a few hours of TV before bedtime, not to mention catching
up on your e-mail on your home computer. Almost every aspect of our lives
is "electrically" oriented.
You are being exposed to millions of EMF's or electromagnetic field
frequencies 24 hours per day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, without knowing
what they are, where they come from, what they do, who regulates them and
whether they can harm your body in some way.
100 years ago our grandparent’s environment was very different. There
were a lot of horses and perhaps a few horseless carriages driving by on
dirt roads. Prior to that, there weren't even any horseless carriages.
You wouldn’t have seen powerlines, electrical appliances of any kind,
wireless phones even if you were one of the lucky ones to have a telephone
at all, computers or televisions! Some people didn't even have radios. Life
was very different then. During the last 100 years, more technological
advancements have been made than in the entire history of humanity prior
to 1900.
In the 21st century there are more technological advancements in one minute
than all the inventions made between 1800 and 1900. Humanity is growing and
advancing at a tremendous rate. All these exciting new technological inventions
allow more and more people to connect with each other, accomplish more at
ever increasing speeds, create more and ultimately enjoy life more.
PROBLEMS STUDIED LINKED TO ELECTROMAGNETIC GADGETS:
The link betweeen cell phones and
cancer
Reproductive disturbances
Fetal abnormalities and developmental
defects (Independently confirmed at 6 different laboratories through the
Office of Naval Research)
Stunted growth, growth retardation and
weight variations in animal studies
Human genetic defects with malformed
children from parents who worked in electric switchyards and exposed to high
voltage fields. 1983 Study at the University of Umea in Sweden.
Birth defect and miscarriage clusters
among pregnant women who work at Video Display terminals
Higher Down's syndrome rate found in
children who's fathers were military radar operators (reported by Dr. a.T.
Siglar in 1965 Bulletin of the Johns Hopkins Hospital
Higher miscarriage rates among pregnant
women working at computers for more than 20 hours per week (study done in
1988 by Kaiser Permanente Health Group in Oakland, CA on 1, 583 pregnant
women)
Chronic stress, skin rashes, disturbances
in menstrual cycles, headaches, nausea, sleeplessness and fatigue
Increases in childhood cancers -leukemia
and brain tumors in particular
Significant increases in learning
disabilities
Immune system disorders
Cancer links to EMF's (especially cancers
of the brain, blood, skin and glandular tissue)
While inconclusive, recent studies indicate
a risk of increased childhood cancer, adult cancer, and miscarriages due
to prolonged exposure to low frequency electromagnetic fields.
A 1979 Denver study of children who
died of cancer showed they were two to three times more likely to have lived
near power lines than healthy children.
Another Denver study, in 1987, suggested
a heightened cancer risk of 1.6 times for children exposed to high
electromagnetic fields.
A 1991 Los Angeles study showed double
the disease rate for children living near power lines or in homes with high
fields.
A 1992 Swedish study of 500,000 people
showed two to four times the risk of childhood leukemia due to power line
proximity.
A Finnish survey indicated a three times
higher than the normal miscarriage rate for women who worked at computer
terminals which emitted high electromagnetic fields. The electromagnetic
field considered safe by the Swedish government is two milliGauss.
The electromagnetic field considered
safe by the Swedish government is two milliGauss.
We need to ask questions now about the side effects of all the EMF's and
the possible side effects that may occur in the future which we may
not even know about yet. It isn't difficult to notice by watching the news
on TV for a few days that our whole society has changed dramatically,
not only in its behavior but in the types of stress we undergo every
day, the stress on our children and ourselves, on our physical bodies and
on the entire ecosystem of the world.
Great changes in our living style means that the human system needs to
adapt. What kind of changes and responses are required to this high level
and continuous exposure to electromagnetic fields?
What are EMF's?
When there is electricity or electrons flowing through wire in our
buildings or through space - there is a magnetic field automatically
generated at right angles to the flow of the electrons. This magnetic field
is almost impossible to protect or guard ourselves from -- as it passes through
most metal, walls, rocks, and human beings. When it passes through humans
or animals, does it simply pass through without harming or changing anything,
or does it affect something that might lead to some problem over time.
The magnetic field of EMF's are measured in "milli-gauss", using a gauss
meter. The measurements of the EMFs of every appliance in your home can be
determined and then you will know how far away you need to stand or sit from
a device without being exposed to dangerous levels of its EMF.
Estimations are that during the last 50 years, the amount of electromagnetic
fields has increased 100 million times. Every day, especially if you live
in a city, you are exposed to 100 million times the radiation your grandparents
had to deal with.
The consequences of these changes won’t be known for many years to
come, but we do know that each increase influences a radical change to the
human life and environment.
Symptoms that can be identified of this type of stress from electromagnetic
fields are: fatigue, confusion, lack of concentration and focus, headaches,
backaches, and increased emotional volatility.
How can I avoid being exposed to electromagnetic fields?
Standing a short distance away from appliances while they are in use
can significantly reduce EMF exposure. Move clocks and radios a few feet
away from your bed. The strength of the EMF decreases dramatically when you
increase the distance between you and the appliance.
One way to reduce your exposure from an electric blanket is to warm the
bed prior to getting in, and turning it off before going to sleep.
Have electrical wiring checked and don’t allow children to play
around transformers or power lines.
Allow your hair to air dry for a few minutes before using a hair dryer.
This will reduce the time needed to dry it.
What should I do if I suspect a problem?
If you suspect that you are being exposed to high levels of EMF, limit
your exposure. Follow the suggested guidelines above to reduce your EMF exposure.
Contact your public utility company or local health department to find out
how to measure the EMF in and around your home. EMF detectors are available
from some electronic stores.
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http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/ats-ap-cell-phone-warningjul24,1,4764899.story
CELLPHONE HEALTH WARNING: PITTSBURGH CANCER INSTITUTE WARNS OF CELL
PHONE-CANCER HIGH RISK, DEFYING PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED RESEARCH! –
By Jennifer C. Yates and Seth Borenstein, Associated Press Writers,
Thursday, July 24, 2008
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The head of a prominent cancer research institute issued
an unprecedented warning to his faculty and staff Wednesday: Limit cell
phone use because of the possible risk of cancer.
The warning from Dr. Ronald B. Herberman, director of the University of
Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, is contrary to numerous studies that don't
find a link between cancer and cell phone use, and a public lack of worry
by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Herberman is basing his alarm on early unpublished data. He says it takes
too long to get answers from science and he believes people should take
action now — especially when it comes to children.
"Really at the heart of my concern is that we shouldn't wait for a
definitive study to come out, but err on the side of being safe rather
than sorry later," Herberman said.
No other major academic cancer research institutions have sounded such an
alarm about cell phone use. But Herberman's advice is sure to raise
concern among many cell phone users and especially parents. In the memo he
sent to about 3,000 faculty and staff Wednesday, he says children should
use cell phones only for emergencies because their brains are still
developing.
Adults should keep the phone away from the head and use the speakerphone
or a wireless headset, he says. He even warns against using cell phones in
public places like a bus because it exposes others to the phone's
electromagnetic fields. The issue that concerns some scientists — though
nowhere near a consensus — is electromagnetic radiation, especially its
possible effects on children. It is not a major topic in conferences of
brain specialists.
A 2008 University of Utah analysis looked at nine studies — including some
Herberman cites — with thousands of brain tumor patients and concludes "we
found no overall increased risk of brain tumors among cellular phone
users. The potential elevated risk of brain tumors after long-term
cellular phone use awaits confirmation by future studies."
Studies last year in France and Norway concluded the same thing.
"If there is a risk from these products — and at this point we do not know
that there is — it is probably very small," the Food and Drug
Administration says on an agency Web site.
Still, Herberman cites a "growing body of literature linking long-term
cell phone use to possible adverse health effects including cancer."
"Although the evidence is still controversial, I am convinced that there
are sufficient data to warrant issuing an advisory to share some
precautionary advice on cell phone use," he wrote in his memo.
A driving force behind the memo was Devra Lee Davis, the director of the
university's center for environmental oncology.
"The question is do you want to play Russian roulette with your brain,"
she said in an interview from her cell phone while using the hands-free
speaker phone as recommended. "I don't know that cell phones are
dangerous. But I don't know that they are safe."
Of concern are the still unknown effects of more than a decade of cell
phone use, with some studies raising alarms, said Davis, a former health
adviser in the Clinton Administration.
She said 20 different groups have endorsed the advice the Pittsburgh
cancer institute gave, and authorities in England, France and India have
cautioned children's use of cell phones. Herberman and Davis point to a
massive ongoing research project known as Interphone, involving scientists
in 13 nations, mostly in Europe. Results already published in
peer-reviewed journals from this project aren't so alarming, but
Herberman is citing work not yet published.
The published research focuses on more than 5,000 cases of brain
tumors. The National Research Council in the U.S., which isn't
participating in the Interphone project, reported in January that the
brain tumor research had "selection bias." That means it relied on people
with cancer to remember how often they used cell phones. It is not
considered the most accurate research approach.
The largest published study, which appeared in the Journal of the National
Cancer Institute in 2006, tracked 420,000 Danish cell phone users,
including thousands that had used the phones for more than 10
years. It found no increased risk of cancer among those using cell phones.
A French study based on Interphone research and published in 2007
concluded that regular cell phone users had "no significant increased
risk" for three major types of nervous system tumors. It did note,
however, that there was "the possibility of an increased risk among the
heaviest users" for one type of brain tumor, but that needs to be verified
in future research.
EARLIER RESEARCH ALSO FOUND NO CONNECTION
Joshua E. Muscat of Penn State University, who has studied cancer and cell
phones in other research projects partly funded by the cell phone
industry, said there are at least a dozen studies that have found no
cancer-cell phone link. He said a Swedish study cited by Herberman as
support for his warning was biased and flawed.
"We certainly don't know of any mechanism by which radiofrequency exposure
would cause a cancerous effect in cells. We just don't know this might
possibly occur," Muscat said.
Cell phones emit radiofrequency energy, a type of radiation that is a form
of electromagnetic radiation, according to the National Cancer Institute.
Though studies are being done to see if there is a link
between it and tumors of the brain and central nervous system, there is no
definitive link between the two, the institute says on its Web site.
"By all means, if a person feels compelled that they should take
precautions in reducing the amount of electromagnetic radio waves through
their bodies, by all means they should do so," said Dan Catena,
a spokesman for the American Cancer Society. "But at the same time, we
have to remember there's no conclusive evidence that links cell phones to
cancer, whether it's brain tumors or other forms of cancer."
Joe Farren, a spokesman for the CTIA-The Wireless Association, a trade
group for the wireless industry, said the group believes there is a risk
of misinforming the public if science isn't used as the ultimate guide
on the issue.
"When you look at the overwhelming majority of studies that have been peer
reviewed and published in scientific journals around the world, you'll
find no relationship between wireless usage and adverse health
affects," Farren said.
Frank Barnes, who chaired the January report from the National Research
Council, said Wednesday that "the jury is out" on how hazardous long-term
cell phone use might be.
Speaking from his cell phone, the professor of electrical and computer
engineering at the University of Colorado at Boulder said he takes no
special precautions in his own phone use. And he offered no specific
advice to people worried about the matter.
It's up to each individual to decide what if anything to do. If people use
a cell phone instead of having a land line, "that may very well be
reasonable for them," he said. Susan Juffe, a 58-year-old Pittsburgh
special education teacher, heard about Herberman's cell phone advice on
the radio earlier in the day.
"Now, I'm worried. It's scary," she said. She says she'll think twice
about allowing her 10-year-old daughter Jayne to use the cell phone.
"I don't want to get it (brain cancer) and I certainly don't want you to
get it," she explained to her daughter.
Sara Loughran, a 24-year-old doctoral student at the University of
Pittsburgh, sat in a bus stop Wednesday chatting on her cell phone with
her mother. She also had heard the news earlier in the day, but was not
as concerned.
"I think if they gave me specific numbers and specific information and it
was scary enough, I would be concerned," Loughran said, planning to call
her mother again in a matter of minutes. "Without specific numbers, it's
too vague to get me worked up."
------------------------------------------
Jennifer Yates reported from Pittsburgh. Science Writer Seth Borenstein
reported from Washington. Reporter Ramit Plushnick-Masti contributed from
Pittsburgh and Science Writer Malcolm Ritter contributed from New York.
ON THE INTERNET:
Advice from the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute:
http://www.environmentaloncology.org/node/201
Food and Drug Administration on cell phones:
http://www.fda.gov/cellphones/qa.html
If you want other stories on this topic, search the Archives at:
http://www.latimes.com/archives
Copyright © 2008 Los Angeles Times
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