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New cell phone and health studies don’t eliminate uncertainty
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Two long-awaited studies of how cell phone radiation affects the health of mice and rats, released yesterday, are giving scientists plenty to think about – but the findings won’t resolve the decades-old uncertainty surrounding the issue.
The voluminous but sometimes puzzling results also aren’t likely to prompt U.S. agencies or other bodies to immediately change how they regulate the ubiquitous devices or view their health risks.
Questions over whether cell phones harm health have persisted for decades. The devices emit non-ionizing, electromagnetic radiation of the sort that heats food in a microwave oven, but scientists have struggled to conclusively link cell phone use to cancers or other illnesses.
In a bid to clarify matters, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which plays a key role in developing U.S. cell phone regulations, asked the National Toxicology Program (NTP) at the National Institutes of Health to launch studies examining the issue. Yesterday, NTP released two studies conducted as part of a $25 million research program.
In the studies, which lasted 2 years, rats and mice of both sexes ran freely in specially constructed reverberation chambers where their entire bodies were exposed to radiation. The levels ranged from a low of 1.5 watts per kilogram to a high of 10/Kg, and exposures were limited to the 2G and 3G frequencies, which are still widely used for voice calls and texting. In general, the animals were exposed to radiation levels that either matched or exceeded what’s permissible under current U.S. regulations.
Exposures began during pregnancy and then continued nine hours a day for 2 years, “which is not a situation that most people will encounter when using cell phones,” said John Bucher, a senior scientist at NTP who co-directed the study. “Though it does allow us to explore the potential for biological effects if they’re going to occur.”
The study’s strongest finding was that male rats had an elevated risk of developing tumors, called malignant schwannomas, in the connective tissues surrounding nerves in the heart. Sex- and species-dependent increases were also observed for lymphoma, as well as cancers of the prostate, skin, lung, liver and brain, but these findings were weaker by comparison and possibly due to causes other than radiation. Similarly, the researchers observed non-cancerous health effects — including lower birth weights, evidence of DNA damage, and heart conditions – among exposed rats, although it was not always clear if the conditions were caused by radiation exposure.
In a counterintuitive result, male rats and mice exposed to radiation lived longer, and had lower levels of age-related kidney disease, than males not exposed to radiation.
Early reactions to the findings suggest they will not dramatically reshape the debate over cell phone safety. Both critics and supporters of current risk evaluations and safety standards claim the studies support their points of view.
The new findings are “incredibly important,” says David Carpenter, a public health physician at the University of Albany, New York, who has long warned of cell phone dangers. “I think this is the first clear evidence showing that these sorts of radiofrequency fields increase risks for all kinds of cancer,” he says, noting that malignant schwannomas have been detected in previous human studies of cell phone risk. He believes that more of the associations between radiation exposure and rodent disease could have reached statistical significance had the study included a larger number of animals.
Jonathan Samet, who led a prominent international scientific panel that concluded that cell phone radiation was a “probable” human carcinogen, predicts the new studies won’t “nudge that classification in one direction or another.” The panel led by Samet, dean of the Colorado State University School of Public Health in Fort Collins, was organized by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, a specialized agency of the World Health Organization.
The findings don’t suggest that U.S. regulations on cellphone radiation need to be tightened, said Jeffrey Shuren, director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, in a statement. The new studies, when combined with previous research, have “given us the confidence that the current safety limits for cell phone radiation remain acceptable for protecting the public health.”
The NTP’s Bucher, who helped lead the new studies, says he has no intention of changing his cell phone habits.
In a statement, the U.S. National Cancer Institute noted that “often, when concerns are raised about exposures that may confer low-level risk for a rare cancer outcome—as is the case for cell phones and brain tumors—it takes time and many studies to come to a conclusion based on the weight of the evidence.” It notes that a major European study of cell phones and brain tumor risk is expected to report results later this year.
Meanwhile, external experts are scheduled to review the new NTP studies at a meeting in late March. NTP also plans to continue its animal studies in new chambers that replicate the radiation produced by the current generation of 4G cell phones.
Read MoreHigh levels of cellphone radiation linked to tumors in male rats – U.S. study
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(Reuters) – Male rats exposed to very high levels of the kind of radiation emitted by cellphones developed tumours in the tissues around their hearts, according to a draft report by U.S. government researchers on the potential health risks of the devices.
Female rats and mice exposed in the same way did not develop tumours, according to the preliminary report from the U.S. National Toxicology Program (NTP), a part of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
The findings add to years of research meant to help settle the debate over whether cellphone radiation is harmful.
Although intriguing, the findings can not be extrapolated to humans, NTP scientists and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Friday. They noted that the animal studies were meant to test extreme exposures to cell phone radiation, and that current safety limits on cellphone radiation are protective.
However, the two 10-year, $25 million studies – the most comprehensive assessments of health effects and exposure to radiofrequency radiation in rats and mice to date – do raise new questions about exposure to the ubiquitous devices.
In the studies, about 6 percent of male rats whose entire bodies were exposed to the highest level of cell phone radiation developed schwannomas – a rare type of tumour – in nerve tissue near their hearts, while there were no schwannomas in animals that were not exposed to radiation.
“The intriguing part of this is the kind of tumours we saw were similar to tumours noted for quite some time in some epidemiological studies in heavy duty cellphone users,” John Bucher, a senior scientist with NTP, said in a telephone interview.
“Of course, these were in the nerves in the ear and next to the brain, but the tumour types were the same as we saw in the heart.”
Dr. Otis Brawley, chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, noted that the studies were negative for common tumours.
“These draft reports are bound to create a lot of concern, but in fact they won’t change what I tell people: the evidence for an association between cellphones and cancer is weak, and so far, we have not seen a higher cancer risk in people,” he said in a statement on Twitter.
Brawley said if cellphone users are concerned about this data in animals they should wear an earpiece.
Unlike ionizing radiation such as that from gamma rays, radon and X-rays, which can break chemical bonds in the body and are known to cause cancer, radiofrequency devices such as cellphones and microwaves emit radiofrequency energy, a form of non-ionizing radiation.
The concern with this type of radiation is that it produces energy in the form of heat, and frequent exposure against the skin could alter brain cell activity, as some studies have suggested.
In the NTP study, rats and mice were exposed to higher levels of radiation for longer periods of time than what people experience with even the highest level of cellphone use, and their entire bodies were exposed all at once, according to the draft report.
Bucher said the effect likely only showed up in the male rats because they were larger, and likely absorbed more radiation than the female rats or mice.
Cellphones typically emit lower levels of radiation than maximum levels allowed, the draft report said.
Cellphone radiation quickly dissipates, so the risk, if any, would be to areas of the body in close proximity to the device emitting the radiation, Bucher said.
He said the findings are intended to help inform the design of future cell phone technologies. The study looked at only 2G and 3G frequencies, which are still commonly used for phone calls. It does not apply to 4G or 5G, which use different frequencies and modulation, he said.
NTP, a part of the National Institutes of Health, will hold an external expert review of its findings on March 26-28.
Dr. Jeffrey Shuren, head of the FDA’s radiological health division, said there is not enough evidence to say cellphone use poses health risks to people.
“Even with frequent daily use by the vast majority of adults, we have not seen an increase in events like brain tumours,” he said in a statement. “We believe the current safety limits for cellphones are acceptable for protecting the public health.”
Asked what the public should take from the study, Bucher said, “I wouldn’t change my behaviour based on these studies, and I haven‘t.”
Nevertheless, the findings are potentially a concern for device makers, especially the world’s three biggest smartphone sellers, Apple Inc, Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and China’s Huawei Technologies.
The CTIA, the trade association representing AT&T Inc, Verizon Communications Inc, Apple Inc, Sprint Corp, DISH Network Corp, and others, said on Friday that previous studies have shown cellphone RF energy emissions have no known heath risks.
”We understand that the NTP draft reports for its mice and rat studies will be put out for comment and peer review so that their significance can be assessed,” the group said.
Samsung and Apple did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Reporting by Bill Berkrot and Caroline Humer in New York, David Shepardson in Washington and Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by Susan Thomas and Diane Craft
Heavy metals Raises Risk of Electromagnetic Sensitivity
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- Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) from cell phones, cell phone towers, wireless Internet, power lines, household electrical wiring and more can trigger serious symptoms, including headaches, fatigue and confusion, in people who are electrosensitive
- There are a number of factors that influence the degree to which you may be affected by EMFs, and your level of heavy metal toxicity is likely one of them
- Heavy metals in your brain also act as micro-antennas, concentrating and increasing reception of EMF radiation
- Any kind of metal implants and/or amalgam (silver) tooth fillings will significantly increase reception of microwaves, and the mircrocurrents from cell phones and other ambient fields
By Dr. Mercola
Electomagnetic fields (EMFs) are all around us, no matter where you live these days. They emanate from power lines, televisions, household electrical wiring, appliances and microwaves.
They come from cell phones, cell phone towers and wireless Internet connections.
It is estimated that 3-8 percent of populations in developed countries experience serious electrohypersensitivity symptoms, while 35 percent experience mild symptoms, according to Dr. Thomas Rau, medical director of the world-renowned Paracelsus Clinic in Switzerland.1
There are a number of factors that influence the degree to which you may be affected by EMFs.
For example, your body weight, body-mass index, bone density, and water and electrolyte levels can alter the conductivity and biological reactivity to EMFs. Heavy metals in your brain also act as micro-antennas, concentrating and increasing reception of EMF radiation.
How Heavy Metal Toxicity May Make Electrohypersensitivity Worse
The issue of heavy metal toxicity in relation to electromagnetic toxicity may be one of the most significant. According to Dr. Yoshiaki Omura’s research, the more your system is contaminated with heavy metals from silver amalgam fillings, eating contaminated fish, living downstream from coal burning power plants and so forth, the more your body becomes a virtual antenna that actually concentrates radiation, making it far more destructive.2
And as noted by Theresa Dale, PhD, CCN, NP:3
“Heavy metals can weaken our field through their frequency outputs by modulating compatible frequency components of the body resulting in a weakening of the field thereby causing unhealthy biochemical changes. If you have accumulated toxic metals in your brain, and since your brain is an antenna, you can actually receive more cell phone radiation, which in turn can cause the microbes in your system to overreact and create more potent mycotoxins.
This can create a never-ending vicious cycle between the microbes and metals in your body and your exposure to electromagnetic fields, which can lead to hypersensitivity. I have seen that a high percentage of illness including chronic infections are caused, and/or aggravated, by electromagnetic field exposure. Then chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia and other chronic pain syndromes can easily develop or worsen.”
Likewise, any kind of metal implants and/or amalgam (silver) tooth fillings will significantly increase reception of microwaves, and the mircrocurrents from cell phones and other ambient fields. In case you’re wondering how to detect electrohypersensitivity, the five most common symptoms are:
- Skin itch/rash/flushing/burning, and/or tingling
- Confusion/poor concentration, and/or memory loss
- Fatigue and weakness
- Headache
- Chest pain and heart problems
What You Need To Know About 5G Wireless and “Small” Cells
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“We recommend a moratorium on the roll-out of the fifth generation, 5G, for telecommunication until potential hazards for human health and the environment have been fully investigated by scientists independent from industry…RF-EMF has been proven to be harmful for humans and the environment.”
— 2017 5G Scientific Appeal (signed by more than 180 scientists and doctors from 35 countries)
Nationwide, communities are being told by wireless companies that it is necessary to build “small cell” wireless facilities in neighborhoods on streetlight and utility poles in order to offer 5G, a new technology that will connect the Internet of Things (IoT). At the local, state, and federal level, new legislation and new zoning aim to streamline the installation of these 5G “small cell” antennas in public rights-of-way.
The radiation from small cells is not small: Wireless antennas emit microwaves — non-ionizing radiofrequency radiation — and essentially function as cell towers. Radiation emitted from small cells is expected to typically travel from 10 feet up to several hundred feet.
Millions of small cells to be built in front yards: The Federal Communications Commission estimates that millions of these wireless transmitters will be built in our rights-of-way, directly in front of our homes.
5G will add to — not replace — our current wireless technology: 5G will add in another layer of wireless radiation to our environment. 5G will not only utilize wireless frequencies already in use but also add in higher frequencies — submillimeter and millimeter waves — in order to transmit data at superfast speeds.
Community authority is overruled: Communities are being stripped of their right to make decisions about this new technology. ”Streamlining” means almost automatic approval. Public notice and public hearings are being eliminated. Even if every homeowner on the block opposes the antennas on their street, the opposition will be disregarded.
Scientists worldwide are calling for a halt to the 5G Roll-out: In 2017, over 180 scientists and doctors issued
a declaration calling for a moratorium on the increase of 5G cell antennas citing human health effects and impacts to wildlife.
Read the 2017 Scientific Appeal on 5G To the European Commission
Read the 2015 EMF Scientist Appeal to the United Nations
Read Letters From Dozens of Scientists on Health Risks of 5G
Cumulative daily radiation exposure poses serious public health risks: Peer reviewed, published science indicates that exposures to wireless radiation can increase cancer risk and alter brain development and damage sperm. Most people are unaware that wireless technology was never tested for long-term safety, that children are more vulnerable and that the accumulated scientific evidence shows harm.
Decreased property values: Studies show property values drop up to 20% on homes near cell towers. Would you buy a home with a mini cell tower in the yard?
Read Research on Cellular Base Stations Near Homes
Microwave antennas in front yards present several worker and public safety issues: Unions have already filed comments that workers were injured, unaware they were working near transmitting antennas. How will HVAC workers, window washers, and tree cutters be protected? The heavy large equipment cabinets mounted on poles along our sidewalks also present new hazards. Cars run into utility poles, often, what then?
There is a safer alternative: Worldwide, many regions invest in safer and smarter fiber optic cabling all the way to each home, rather than antennas in front yards. Wired fiberoptic connections are safer, faster, more reliable, provide greater capacity, and are more cyber-secure.
www.ehtrust.org
Electromagnetic Fields Linked to (Flu) Respiratory Issues
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Study: Mom’s Exposure During Pregnancy Raises Kids’ Asthma Risk
Aug. 1, 2011 — Researchers seeking to explain the rising number of asthma cases in children have fingered a new suspect: electromagnetic fields (EMFs), energy that can’t been seen or felt that is generated by household appliances, electronic devices, cars, and power lines.
In a study, they found that babies born to women who are exposed to stronger EMFs during pregnancy had more than triple the risk of developing asthma compared to babies born to women exposed to weaker EMFs.
In other words, about 13% of children born to women in the group with the lowest EMF exposures developed asthma compared to about 33% of children born to women who had high EMF exposures.
“That’s a striking figure,” says David Savitz, PhD, a professor of community health and obstetrics and gynecology at Brown University in Providence, R.I. “That magnitude of association we don’t see very often. If it was correct, and that’s a big ‘if,’ that would be really startling.”
Savitz, who has studied the health effects of electromagnetic fields but was not involved in the research, says that while the finding is interesting, there’s no reason to give up using a hair dryer or microwave just yet.
He says that unlike contaminants like cigarette smoke or lead that are known to be dangerous, there’s little evidence that low-frequency EMFs, the kind measured in the study, are harmful.
“This has been very, very thoroughly studied, and it really is questionable whether it causes any health effects at any reasonable level,” Savitz tells WebMD. “It’s certainly not something that falls into the category of a known hazard.”
But Savitz and others acknowledge that all research has to start somewhere.
“There are a lot of important topics that started out looking pretty flaky and pretty unlikely. There was a time when it made no sense that smoking could be bad for you,” he says.
Other experts agree.
“The study appears to be well executed and the finding is surprising,” says Jonathan M. Samet, MD, a pulmonologist and epidemiologist at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.
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Read MoreCanadians claiming to have ‘electromagnetic hypersensitivity’ feel forced to escape modern life
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David Fancy first noticed it while was living in Montreal in the early 2000s.
He got headaches and heard ringing in his ears after he used his cell phone. It got worse when he moved into an apartment near power lines and a cell tower. It got so bad, he had to move out.
He finally discovered an explanation that seemed to make sense: “electromagnetic hypersensitivity,” or “EHS” for short.
“Simplest terms, it’s an allergy to human-made electromagnetic emissions,” says David, a dramatic arts professor at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ont.
Reported symptoms of EHS include headaches, ear ringing, dizziness, nerve pain, burning skin sensations and heart palpitations. Common triggers are cell phones, WiFi, Bluetooth signals, cell towers, power lines and, in extreme cases, anything electric.
David Fancy says he started feeling symptoms of ‘electromagnetic hypersensitivity’ in the early 2000s, and was forced to move because of it. (Sam Colbert)
“There was an extensive period where I had to live outside because I was unable to tolerate being indoors,” David says. “Simply being in the electrical environment of a household was impossible.”
Health Canada’s position is that there’s no scientific evidence to support electromagnetic hypersensitivity.
Some studies have blamed the “nocebo” effect. That’s the flip side of the placebo effect, when the expectation of a negative outcome causes that outcome. In other words, it might be psychological.
Or perhaps the symptoms associated with EHS are caused by something else, and have nothing to do with electromagnetic fields.
But David expresses frustration with the skepticism over EHS.
“Anybody who wholesale disregards the lived experience of thousands or tens of thousands of people, without investigating or trying to understand them, in this day and age, is described as bigoted, prejudiced and discriminatory,” he says.
He lived in a woodlot in the Niagara region for three years. At Brock, he was able to continue teaching at a location off campus.
“You go through an initial phase of feeling hunted, frankly, where you don’t understand the correlation between the trigger and the experience,” he says.
After David was told that EHS might be the culprit for his symptoms, he worked with a team of environmental physicians. He says he is now able to tolerate electromagnetic fields at low levels or short durations. He built himself a house out in the country, specially designed to limit exposure.
He’s also been helping others who’ve had similar experiences, and is hopeful that EHS will become more widely recognized and treated.
“Change takes time. And I’m comfortable with skepticism, as long as the skeptics take time to look at all the research.”
What are electric and magnetic fields?
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An electric field is produced by voltage, which is the pressure used to push the electrons through the wire, much like water being pushed through a pipe. As the voltage increases, the electric field increases in strength. Electric fields are measured in volts per meter (V/m).
A magnetic field results from the flow of current through wires or electrical devices and increases in strength as the current increases. The strength of a magnetic field decreases rapidly with increasing distance from its source. Magnetic fields are measured in microteslas (μT, or millionths of a tesla).
Electric fields are produced whether or not a device is turned on, whereas magnetic fields are produced only when current is flowing, which usually requires a device to be turned on. Power lines produce magnetic fields continuously because current is always flowing through them. Electric fields are easily shielded or weakened by walls and other objects, whereas magnetic fields can pass through buildings, living things, and most other materials.
Electric and magnetic fields together are referred to as electromagnetic fields, or EMFs. The electric and magnetic forces in EMFs are caused by electromagnetic radiation. There are two main categories of EMFs:
- Higher-frequency EMFs, which include x-rays and gamma rays. These EMFs are in the ionizing radiation part of the electromagnetic spectrum and can damage DNA or cells directly.
- Low- to mid-frequency EMFs, which include static fields (electric or magnetic fields that do not vary with time), magnetic fields from electric power lines and appliances, radio waves, microwaves, infrared radiation, and visible light. These EMFs are in the non-ionizing radiation part of the electromagnetic spectrum and are not known to damage DNA or cells directly. Low- to mid-frequency EMFs include extremely low frequency EMFs (ELF-EMFs) and radiofrequency EMFs. ELF-EMFs have frequencies of up to 300 cycles per second, or hertz (Hz), and radiofrequency EMFs range from 3 kilohertz (3 kHz, or 3,000 Hz) to 300 gigahertz (300 GHz, or 300 billion Hz). Radiofrequency radiation is measured in watts per meter squared (W/m2).
The electromagnetic spectrum represents all of the possible frequencies of electromagnetic energy. It ranges from extremely long wavelengths (extremely low frequency exposures such as those from power lines) to extremely short wavelengths (x-rays and gamma rays) and includes both non-ionizing and ionizing radiation.
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Read MoreTop Story: Cellphones linked to cancer through shocking new study
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I’ve gotten the question here on the show for years. And it’s natural to wonder about it. When you put your phone against your head, is the radiation that’s emitted doing physical harm to your body?
It begged the question no one wanted to ask or know the answer to, will using your phone give you cancer?
Read More
