A Report on Non-Ionizing Radiation

News & Comment

Ignorance Drowns Out Precaution

NY Times Tech Columnist Has Hands Slapped

Friday, March 20, 2015

Last updated April 19, 2015

The New York Times went into damage control mode yesterday after Nick Bilton, a tech columnist and a rising star at the newspaper, suggested that precaution is the best approach to the use of cell phones and wearable electronics.

No sooner had Bilton’s column hit print than Margaret Sullivan, the Times’ Public Editor, chastised Bilton for his naive analysis. (It was posted on the Web a day earlier.) Sullivan targeted the lack of “sophisticated evaluation of serious research.”

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RF Cancer Promotion:
Animal Study Makes Waves

Germany’s Alex Lerchl Does a U-Turn

Friday, March 13, 2015

Last updated March 14, 2015

The RF–cancer story took a remarkable turn a few days ago. A new animal study challenged many of the assumptions which lie at the heart of claims that RF radiation —whether from cell phones, cell towers or Wi-Fi— are safe.

The new study, from Germany, a replication of an earlier experiment, also from Germany, found that weak cell phone signals can promote the growth of tumors in mice. It used radiation levels that do not cause heating and are well below current safety standards. Complicating matters even further, lower doses were often found to be more effective tumor promoters than higher levels; in effect, turning the conventional concept of a linear dose-response on its head.

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No Cancer Risk from Power Lines,
Says the New York Times

Big Score for Industry Scientists

Monday, December 1, 2014

Last updated March 20, 2015

”Still worried about power lines and cancer? That’s so retro, says the New York Times. You’re just stuck in the 1980’s.

This is what the “newspaper of record” wants you to know about the risk of childhood leukemia from power lines: A “fairly broad consensus among researchers holds that no significant threat to public health has materialized.”

The full message is told in a new 7+ minute video, produced by the Times’ RetroReport, which boasts a staff of 13 journalists and 10 contributors, led by Kyra Darnton. The video even credits a fact checker. What was missing is the common sense to do some digging when reporting on a controversial issue.

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CDC Calls for Caution on Cell Phones, Then Gets Cold Feet

First Federal Agency To Acknowledge Risk Soon Backs Down

Saturday, August 16, 2014

Last updated January 1, 2016

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention —CDC— is the first U.S. health agency to call for precaution in the use of cell phones.

But not for long. As soon as word of the CDC’s new outlook spread, the precautionary advice was withdrawn. Our original story is below, followed by an August 20 addendum.

“Along with many organizations worldwide, we recommend caution in cell phone use,” the CDC stated on its Web site’s FAQ About Cell Phones and Your Health and followed up with a call for more research to answer the unresolved cancer question.

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EMF Cancer Promotion: An Old Idea Makes a Strong Comeback

Large Study Shows Recent, But Not Lifetime, Exposures Lead to Brain Tumors

Monday, June 30, 2014

Last updated June 9, 2017

Power-frequency magnetic fields can promote brain tumors, according to the largest epidemiological study of its kind ever undertaken. The study promises to breathe new life into the idea that extremely low frequency (ELF) EMFs are more likely to be cancer promoters than causes of cancer. This hypothesis gained support a generation ago but has lost currency in recent years.

The new results, published online earlier this month by the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, come from INTEROCC, an international project with seven participating countries designed to investigate occupational health risks from chemicals and EMFs. The project is directed by Elisabeth Cardis at CREAL in Barcelona with $1.5 million from the U.S. National Institutes of Health (though none of the tumor cases are from the U.S.).

The INTEROCC team found that those who were exposed to elevated EMF exposures at work during the five years prior to diagnosis had significantly higher rates of glioma compared to those who were least exposed during that time on the job. The greater the exposure, the greater the tumor risk.

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Pulsed RF: Plausible Cause of Havana Syndrome

March 30, 2023

A newly declassified, though heavily redacted, report from the intelligence community has put renewed emphasis on the possibility that the condition known as “Havana Syndrome” could be caused by pulsed RF energy.

“Electromagnetic energy, particularly pulsed signals in the radiofrequency range, plausibly explains the core characteristics [of Havana Syndrome, also called ‘anomalous health incidents’] although information gaps exist,” the intelligence panel concluded.

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David Carpenter Reinstated

February 21, 2023

Last updated February 22, 2023

The University at Albany in New York State has closed its investigation of Professor David Carpenter, the director of its Institute for Health and the Environment, without taking any disciplinary action.

After being barred from going to his office most of last year, Carpenter may now once again “teach and conduct research on campus,” according to a statement released by the University on Tuesday evening.

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Abe Liboff Dies at 95

January 12, 2023

Last updated March 21, 2023

Abraham Liboff, a biophysicst and journal editor, died on January 9 at the age of 95.

Abe was a wonderful and generous man. On the occasion of his 90th birthday, I wrote an appreciation of his work. You can read it here.

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French Health Agency Seeks RF Research

November 16, 2022

ANSES, the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety, has issued a request for proposals for studies on RF radiation.

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RF Health Review, Paris in November

October 19, 2022

Last updated October 31, 2022

Two influential health agencies, both based in France, will host a one-day meeting on RF–health research, November 23 in Paris. The public is invited to attend in person or online. Registration is free.

The conference, organized by ANSES, the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety, and IARC, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, will focus on potential effects of RF radiation on the brain and on cancer risks. The theme is “Research in a Fast-Moving Environment.”

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The MW Debate Continues
—in Norwegian

July 14, 2022

Last updated July 15, 2022

Close to 40 years after its first publication, The Microwave Debate, Nicholas Steneck’s history of research and regulation of microwave health effects, is back in print —this time in Norwegian.

The new translation comes with an epilogue by Thomas Butler, a professor at Ireland’s Cork University Business School, who has contributed seven chapters —about 30,000 words— to bring Steneck’s story up to the present.

The translation is the brainchild of Einar Flydal ...

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Hot new papers & articles

“Thermal and Non-Thermal Health Effects of Low Intensity Non-Ionizing Radiation: An International Perspective,” Environmental Pollution, posted July 6, 2018. An “urgent” call for action from D. Belpomme, L. Hardell, I. Belyaev, E. Burgio & D. Carpenter.
“ELF EMFs Impair the Cognitive and Motor Abilities of Honey Bees,” Scientific Reports, posted May 21, 2018. “Together our results show that acute exposure to ELF EMFs, at intensities ranging from those at ground level to those near transmission lines, can have profound effects on honey bees.” Open access.
“Exposure to Non-Ionizing EMFs Emitted from Mobile Phones Induced DNA Damage in Human Ear Canal Hair Follicle Cells,” Electromagnetic Biology and Medicine, posted April 18, 2018. This study shows “a positive correlation betwen duration of exposure and DNA damage.”
“Exposure of Insects to RF EMFs from 2 to 120 GHz,” Scientific Reports, posted March 2, 2018. SImulations show that, “A shift of 10% of the incident power density to frequencies above 6 GHz would lead to an increase in absorbed power between 3–370%. This could lead to changes in insect behaviour, physiology and morphology over time due to an increase in body temperatures from dielectric heating. The studied insects that are smaller than 1 cm show a peak in absorption at frequencies” above 6 GHz, which will to used by 5G. (Open access)
“A Circadian Clock in the Blood-Brain Barrier Regulates Xenobiotic Efflux,” Cell, April 5, 2018. “We report a rhythm of BBB permeability driven by a clock within the BBB.”
“Comparison of RF EMF Exposure Levels in Different Everyday Microenvironments in an International Context,” Environment International, May 2018. “Exposure levels tended to increase with increasing urbanity. In most microenvironments downlink from mobile phone base stations is the most relevant contributor.” One exception: Australia where broadcast radiation was #1.
“Intensity-Time Dependence Dosing Criterion in the EMF Exposure Guidelines in Russia,” Electromagnetic Biology and Medicine, online March 1, 2018. From the Research Institute of Occupational Health in Moscow.
“Effect of Tumor-Treating Fields Plus Maintenance Temozolomide vs Maintenance Temozolomide Alone on Survival in Patients with Glioblastoma: A Randomized Clinical Trial,” JAMA, December 19, 2017. Supplementing chemotherapy with 200 kHz E-fields increased progression-free survival (by 2.7 months to 6.7 months) and overall survival (by 4.9 months to 20.9 months) in patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma. Both are statistically significant improvements.
“Two-Year Oncogenicity Evaluations of Cell Phone RF Radiation in Sprague-Dawley Rats and B6C3F1 Mice,” Toxicology Letters, Supplement 1, October 20, 2017. “Considering (a) the conflicting results of RF epidemiology studies and (b) the lack of generally accepted biophysical or molecular mechanisms through which RF could induce or promote neoplasia, data from animal bioassays will play a central role in ‘weight-of-the-evidence’ assessments of the possible health effects of RF exposure.” Abstract only. By IITRI’s David McCormick, who ran the exposures for the NTP–cell phone cancer study.
“Activation of Signaling Cascades by Weak ELF EMFs,” Cellular Physiology and Biochemistry, online October 16, 2017. Effects seen for exposures to ELF magnetic fields as low as 0.15μT [1.5mG]. Note caveat: These results “cannot be regarded as proof of involvement in cancer, including childhood leukemia.” From the Weizmann Institute in Israel. Open access.

A Report on Non-Ionizing Radiation

News & Comment

NY Times Tech Columnist Has Hands Slapped

Germany’s Alex Lerchl Does a U-Turn

Big Score for Industry Scientists

First Federal Agency To Acknowledge Risk Soon Backs Down

Large Study Shows Recent, But Not Lifetime, Exposures Lead to Brain Tumors

Pages

Short Takes

Hot new papers & articles

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