The Linear Canvas

EMR (Electromagnetic Radiation) is a dangerous by-product of our wireless age. I have been a Radio Frequency (RF) Engineer for over fifteen years and have been exposed to microwave (MW) EMR on a fairly regular basis during that time. The same precautions that RF professionals take are also advisable for people who are exposed to EMR from consumer products.

EMR safety is an often ignored issue because of the ease of use that wireless products allow. But EMR is a lethal component of products like cell phones, wireless phones, blue tooth accessories, WiFi network hotspots, and wireless television broadcasting. Long term usage studies are beginning to show a cause and effect relationship to serious illnesses related to EMR exposure. European Union countries currently advise parents to not allow cell phone use by children and young adults, based on the heat generated by MW radiation from the phone’s antenna.

It is somewhat correct to make an analogy to sticking your head into a low power microwave oven when you talk on a cell phone. The data/voice component of wireless communications, which is modulated onto the RF signal, has been shown to make the EMR worse than the microwave radiation by itself. Johnnie Cochran, one of O.J. Simpson’s lawyers during his murder trial, died of a brain tumor that was related to cell phone usage according to his physician, Dr. Keith Black, head of neurosurgery at Cedars Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles. (see http://www.emfacts.com/weblog/?p=154) Dr. Black made that statement when he was interviewed on CNN in 2005. There is even concern that the cumulative MW radiation emitted by cell phone towers is the cause of dwindling honey bee populations in the world, although no link has been verified.

Minimize your EMR exposure: Decrease hazardous risks.

1. Minimize all exposure and usage of wireless communication, ie. cell phones, cordless phones, and WiFi devices.
2. Turn cell phones off when not in use or while you’re sleeping. Never keep a wireless or cell phone near your head or use it to surf the web, play games, watch TV/movies, etc.
3. Keep cell phones at least 6-7 inches away from your body and other people while on, talking, texting, or downloading. Newer cell phones that have Internet access or cameras have higher powered RF transmitters, which increases the potential for harm.
4. Use air tube headsets or speaker mode when talking. Wireless and wired headsets still conduct radiation!
5. Never keep a cell phone in your pocket, purse, on your back or your hip all day. The hip produces 80% of the body’s red blood cells and is especially vulnerable to EMR damage. Close proximity may also affect fertility.
6. Do not talk on cell or cordless phones if you are pregnant, have a baby or a small child in your arms or lap, if you are under 16 years old, or while you are in any vehicle, like cars, trains, planes, or subways. Radiation gets trapped and is at a higher intensity in these closed and very reflective metal areas.
7. Minimize other EMR exposures to developing fetus via Ultrasounds and Electronic Fetal Monitoring unless absolutely necessary.
8. Replace all cordless and WiFi items with wired, corded devices (phones, Internet, games, appliances, etc.). A cordless phone base emits high levels of EMR , even when no one is making a call or receiving one.
9. Minimize/spread out computer usage, sit back from the screen; flat (LCD) screens are preferable. Use wired Internet connections, not WiFi, especially for laptops. Keep laptops off of your body and away from metal surfaces.
10. Keep a low-EMR sleep, home, and personal zone. Move an alarm clock radio at least 3 feet from your head or use a battery powered clock. Six feet is the recommended distance from all electronic devices during sleep. Avoid waterbeds, electric blankets and metal bed frames. Futons/wood frames are better than metal-coiled mattresses and box-springs.
11. When using electric stoves, cook on back burners instead of the front, as much as possible. Metals attract EMR, so keep them away from and off of your body. Use glass, cast iron and uncoated pans to cook with.
12. You can measure EMR from wireless and wired devices with an appropriate meter (see http://www.safewireless.org). To decrease exposure hazards, install EMR filters and preventive technologies on electrical circuits, devices, appliances, etc.

Cell phones and other wireless devices are probably here to stay. Safer devices are possible, but not very likely without government regulation. Any new regulation of wireless products is never a certainty regardless of which political party is in power. The wireless telecommunications companies have many friends in the capitals of every county, state and country in the world. They would not be that willing to change their operations for any reason unless there was a profit in it or they were made to do it. In this case they would probably have to completely re-invent the personal communication device, which is even more unlikely.