EMF Toxicity: Is it at the root of your symptoms?
Do you suffer from EMF toxicity? Here is how to know and what to do about it.
If you are working to recover from a chronic health condition or simply optimize your health and longevity, you’re probably aware of the toxins and metals in our food, water, personal care and household products. You have likely heard of detox supplements, special diets, and protocols to fight metals, chemicals, bacteria, fungi, and parasites — but did you know EMF toxicity is dramatically affecting your health too? Learn about hidden EMF exposures and what to do about them.
What you will learn in this article:
- The reason EMFs affect our health
- The startling number of health disorders linked to EMF exposure
- The two types of EMF and how they affect you
- The rollout of 5G is causing controversy because it uses a much higher frequency than 4G and involves the installation of considerably more antennae. Cities around the globe are banning 5G, which has not been tested for safety by mobile companies.
- The EMF emitting device inside many people’s homes that is causing serious symptoms like insomnia, headaches, tinnitus, lethargy, and cognitive issues.
- Why some people are more sensitive than others to EMFs.
- The EMF safety precautions you must use to best protect your health.
*Be sure to check out the cited references at the end of this article if you’d like to dive deeper into the science.
EMF stands for electromagnetic field and is the term used to describe the cellular, wireless, microwave, and electrical fields we are exposed to these days at unprecedented levels in human history.
Most people, including regulatory agencies who are supposed to protect our health, do not pay attention to, and even downplay, the science regarding the health risks of EMFs. Never in history has the human body been exposed to this many man-made EMFs, and the research on their dangers continues to mount. However, since EMF exposure is fairly new and the actual electromagnetic fields are invisible, many people are ridiculed and not taken seriously when they express concern.
However, the reality is that many people, especially people with chronic health conditions, are very sensitive to EMFs. And studies show that even if you don’t notice the effects, EMFs are definitely impacting your health.
This is especially concerning as 5G wireless increasingly reaches across the country and “smart” meters continue to be added to more homes.
How we become EMF toxic
We can’t see them, smell them, or feel them, so how can EMFs be harmful to us? Although extremely sensitive people can feel EMFs, most people don’t take the issue seriously because EMFs are invisible. After all, surgeons initially ridiculed and rejected the notion that washing their hands could save patient lives when the germ theory was emerging in the 1800s.
The first thing to understand is that the body is a very electric organism (1). The heart, brain, and many cellular and metabolic processes operate through electrical charges (2). In fact, healthy function of these operations depends, in part, on natural and healthy EMFs generated by the earth (the Schumann resonance), the atmosphere, and the sun (3). All living things generate natural electromagnetic fields. This is one reason people feel so much better when they spend time in nature away from cities and buildings.
However, these natural, beneficial EMFs are blocked and drowned out in our modern environments by pavement, buildings, and an ever-present bombardment of various types of electronic devices.
As a result, our own delicate electrical processes lose their synchronicity with natural EMFs and instead become overwhelmed by man-made ones.
EMF toxicity symptoms
Research has linked EMFs with cancer, heart irregularities, sleep difficulties, inflammation, and more. Because symptoms can vary from person to person and resemble symptoms of other health disorders, it can be hard to identify EMF-related toxicity.
However, here are a few health disorders that have been linked to EMFs (4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13):
- Insomnia
- Cancer
- Poor childhood development
- Dysregulated cellular function
- Poor brain function
- Male infertility
- Female infertility
- Heart stress
People who experience obvious symptoms in the presence of EMF exposure report depression, fatigue, brain fog, poor focus and concentration, dizziness, irritability, anxiety, skin burning and tingling, and appetite loss.
Are some EMFs more dangerous than others?
When we say “EMFs,” we are referring to a big spectrum of sources with varying frequencies.
There are two types of EMFs (14):
Non-ionizing: These have low to medium frequencies and include WiFi networks, cell phones, computers, Bluetooth, microwave ovens, smart meters, and power lines.
Ionizing: These are medium to high frequency and include ultraviolet light (tanning beds), sunlight, X-rays, and gamma rays.
The subject of EMF safety is controversial because exposure to low-ionizing sources such as cell phones does not cause immediate effects except in the most sensitive. However, it is believed the effects are cumulative over time.
Additionally, consider the power, popularity, and wealth behind cell phones, WiFi, computers, and Bluetooth. Carrying out and publicizing objective large-scale research against such formidable giants is simply not financially feasible.
Cell phones and cancer
We can’t live without them anymore, but the technological marvel of cell phones comes with a dark side for human health.
The link between cell phones and cancer is especially solid, with numerous studies linking cell phones to cancers in the brain, breasts, skin, thyroid, and multiple other sites (15). The incidences of these cancers have risen in proportion to the increasing use of cell phones, and women are more vulnerable.
The extent of usage matters and studies that look at short-term use miss the boat in evaluating risk (16).
If you look in the settings of your own cell phone and go to the legal notices, under Radio Frequency Exposure or RF exposure, you will see recommendations to use the speakerphone option rather than putting the phone against your head to limit exposure.
5G and smart meters
Cell phones are the first consideration for EMF toxicity because we use them so heavily, but other sources of EMF toxicity are also a concern:
5G: You may have noticed some controversy around 5G. What specifically are the concerns?
In essence, 5G is a faster version of 4G, the mobile telecommunications service that allows us to access the internet on our phones. 5G uses a higher-frequency wireless band so data can be transferred more quickly. However, it can’t reach as far so it will need more antennas closer together — every two to ten homes in neighborhoods for example (17).
Experts cite the demand of cell phone usage that has tripled in the last three years. However, detractors cite numerous health risks so profound that some European and US cities cities are banning the introduction of 5G, the most notable being Brussels because 5G exceeds current radiation guidelines.
Sadly, there were no studies on the effects of 5G on human health before the roll out began, even though it operates at a higher frequency. In fact, it uses the same frequency as a military weapon that produces extreme pain in subjects when the frequency is targeted on a specific point (18).
Smart meters: Smart meters, wireless meter readers, have received significant public backlash because of the symptoms many people have experienced after they were installed (19). Smart meters exceed FCC radiation limits and the symptoms most commonly reported after smart meters installation are insomnia, headaches, tinnitus, lethargy, and cognitive issues (20).
Why some people are more sensitive than others to EMFs
It’s not uncommon to see people with more fragile health conditions become noticeably sensitive to EMFs. Their immune systems are so dysfunctional and hyper-vigilant that they begin reacting to multiple things, including foods, chemicals, metals, and EMFs. For these folks, a comprehensive wellness and detoxification program that includes binders, liver support, and an anti-inflammatory lifestyle can help lower the toxic burden on the body so that they can better tolerate EMFs.
However, there are others who seem completely healthy and normal who start reacting to EMFs so severely that they must move to a low EMF area in order to recover. Naturally, these people are continually gaslighted by doctors and the people in their lives, accused of being conspiracy theorists or hypochondriacs. But a 2017 study showed brain differences in people with EMF sensitivities compared to subjects who showed no symptoms (21). These brain changes were similar to what is seen in people impacted by neurotoxic chemicals. Also, the vast majority of sufferers are women.
How to protect yourself from EMFs
It’s basically to live and participate in the modern world without exposing yourself to significant amounts of EMF frequencies.
However, there are some measures you can take to help buffer your body and allow your cells to recover from overexposure.
Don’t carry your cell phone on your body. Even package inserts with new cell phones warn you not to carry your phone on your body due to radiation and cancer concerns (22). For the same reason, do not put the phone to your head when you talk. Use the speaker or EMF-free headphones.
Put your phone on airplane mode as much as possible. If you don’t need it, put it on airplane mode to reduce your exposure.
Consider moving if you live near power lines or cell towers. This is hard but if you are near big power lines, a cell tower, a generator station, a radio station, electric train tracks you may want to move. Also check if your home has a smart meter and consider shielding it. Some apartment complexes put all the smart meters outside one apartment’s wall. If that wall is yours, you may want to move.
Reduce EMF exposure in your home. To reduce exposure in your home, consider working on your computer wired versus WiFi, turn off your router at night, don’t sleep near the circuit breaker or large appliances, and consider purchasing various protection devices to shield you from EMFs.
Schedule EMF-free time on your calendar. Choose some time on a regular basis where you unplug and go off grid — no phones, no computers, and no Bluetooth. For optimal results, get into nature where there is no cell service.
Ground yourself in nature. You also need to schedule regular time in the outdoors in order to help your body detox from EMFs. If possible, get into an area with no service, spend some time walking with bare feet, and go with someone whose company you enjoy. Studies show time in nature and healthy socialization are great for your health (23, 24).
Bottomline
Although you want to reduce your exposure to EMFs as much as possible, the truth is that completely isolating yourself from them is not possible for most of us. However, by taking practical steps to minimize EMF exposure, you reduce the impact of EMFs on your cell function, DNA, and brain health.
References
- https://www.nmr.mgh.harvard.edu/news/141119/45-years-of-biomagnetism-and-squid
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK21063/
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306987703000276
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17548154
- https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/new-studies-link-cell-phone-radiation-with-cancer/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15042631
- http://www.waldorftoday.com/2013/07/student-science-experiment-finds-plants-wont-grow-near-wi-fi-router/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24012322
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22112647
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22465825
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23334843
- http://www.safeinschool.org/2011/02/latest-in-scientific-world-on-health.html
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24021427
- https://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/agents/emf/
- https://www.greenmedinfo.health/blog/44-reasons-cell-phones-can-cause-cancer
- http://www.mreengenharia.com.br/pathfisology/Pathophysiology_2009_L_Morgan.pdf
- https://www.rcrwireless.com/20161020/network-infrastructure/att-outlines-5g-network-architecture-tag4
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Active_Denial_System
- https://stopsmartmeters.org/2016/03/04/smart-meter-resources-from-ronald-powell-ph-d/
- http://emfsafetynetwork.org/smart-meters/smart-meter-health-complaints/
- https://www.degruyter.com/view/j/reveh.2017.32.issue-3/reveh-2017-0014/reveh-2017-0014.xml
- https://www.consumers4safephones.com/apple-warns-customers-to-never-use-or-carry-an-iphone-in-your-pocket/
- https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-getting-away-in-nature-is-good-for-your-mental-health/
- https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/living-mild-cognitive-impairment/201606/the-health-benefits-socializing
