Saturday, April 02, 2016

The Mullumbimby Steiner School on EMR safety

The Mullumbimby Steiner School on EMR safety


Excerpt

From the newsletter of the Shearwater Mullumbimby Steiner School, located in New South Wales, Australia.

EMR Safety
WIRELESS RADIATION EXPERT and health researcher Priyanka Bandara, Advisor to the Environmental Health Trust USA and Doctors for Safer Schools, visited Shearwater last week for a series of presentations, to High School students, staff and the wider community, on the documented health effects associated with prolonged exposure to wireless radiation, emitted by devices such as mobile phones, Wi-Fi enabled computers and wireless routers.

SNIP

Read the post here.

Friday, April 01, 2016

How independent is ICNIRP?


How independent is ICNIRP?


ICNIRP makes the following claims on its web site:

"As an independent organization, the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) provides scientific advice and guidance on the health and environmental effects of non-ionizing radiation (NIR) to protect people and the environment from detrimental NIR exposure. NIR refers to electromagnetic radiation such as ultraviolet, light, infrared, and radiowaves, and mechanical waves such as infra- and ultrasound. In daily life, common sources of NIR include the sun, household electrical appliances, mobile phones, Wi-Fi, and microwave ovens."

"ICNIRP gives recommendations on limiting exposure for the frequencies in the different NIR subgroups. It develops and publishes Guidelines, Statements, and reviews used by regional, national, and international radiation protection bodies, such as the World Health Organization. ICNIRP is a main contributor to the international scientific NIR dialogue and the advancement of NIR protection."

"ICNIRP is independent from commercial, national and vested interests. ICNIRP’s members do not represent their country of origin nor their institute. They cannot hold a position of employment or have other interests that compromise their scientific independence. ICNIRP does not receive money from industry, its funding stems from subsidies granted by national and international public institutions. For more information on fundings and governance, read here."

http://www.icnirp.org/en/home/home-read-more.html 

"In 2014 the ICNIRP activities were supported by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMUB), the European Union Directorate General Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion (Safety at Work), the International Radiation Protection Association (IRPA), the New Zealand Ministry of Health, the Israel Ministry of Health, the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA), the Australian Communications & Media Authority (ACMA). ICNIRP ́s annual financial reports are subject to the audit by the German Tax Authorities every three years."

http://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/doc/Annual_Report_2014.pdf

"The Commission membership consists of a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and up to 12 members. Commission members are independent experts in the scientific disciplines relevant to non-ionizing radiation protection. In carrying out their voluntary work for the Commission they do not represent either their countries of origin or their institutes. ICNIRP members are required to declare any personal interests in relation to their activities for ICNIRP."


In 2015, Dr. Dariusz Leszczynski delivered a key-note presentation to the Swiss association Gigaherz in which he made the following accusations regarding ICNIRP (Leszczynski, D. "Science and Conflict of Interest in Bioelectromagnetics." Mar 7, 2015;http://bit.ly/1CMWkHq):
"ICNIRP hijacked the WHO EMF Project."
"ICNIRP, the self-appointing NGO, has no accountability at all -- nobody controls its activities (not for CoI [conflict of interest] disclosures, nor for erroneous decisions)."
"Can "private club" ICNIRP be fully trusted with the EHC [the WHO's Environmental Health Criteria] task that is certainly lobbied by the telecom" [industry]?
"Activity of WHO EMF Project and memberships of ICNIRP and SCENHIR should be overhauled ... and clear accountability rules should be set."


ICNIRP's commission members for the 2016-2020 term appear below followed by brief biographies and links to personal declarations of interest. The new term of office begins on May 13, 2016 after the end of the IRPA Congress.

You can decide for yourself whether these 14 scientists and the 29 members of ICNIRP's Scientific Expert Group should be entrusted with establishing the international EMF guidelines which form the basis for EMF regulatory standards in most nations.

Not one of these individuals was among the the 220 EMF scientists who signed the International EMF Scientist Appeal which is critical of ICNIRP's EMF guidelines:
"The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) established in 1998 the “Guidelines For Limiting Exposure To Time-Varying Electric, Magnetic, and Electromagnetic Fields (up to 300 GHz)”[1]. These guidelines are accepted by the WHO and numerous countries around the world. The WHO is calling for all nations to adopt the ICNIRP guidelines to encourage international harmonization of standards. In 2009, the ICNIRP released a statement saying that it was reaffirming its 1998 guidelines, as in their opinion, the scientific literature published since that time “has provided no evidence of any adverse effects below the basic restrictions and does not necessitate an immediate revision of its guidance on limiting exposure to high frequency electromagnetic fields[2]. ICNIRP continues to the present day to make these assertions, in spite of growing scientific evidence to the contrary. It is our opinion that, because the ICNIRP guidelines do not cover long-term exposure and low-intensity effects, they are insufficient to protect public health."

As I mentioned in my previous message ... ICNIRP should be composed of members (including its scientific expert group) who possess a comprehensive and deep understanding of the scientific literature regarding chronic, low intensity exposure to non-ionizing radiation and biology or health. In addition, these experts should be unbiased and should not possess even the appearance of a conflict of interest.

--
ICNIRP Commissioners
Eric van Rongen (Chair), Netherlands
Maria Feychting (Vice Chair), Sweden
Rodney Croft, Australia
Guglielmo d'Inzeo, Italy
Adele Green, Australia
Akimasa Hirata, Japan
Brian Lund, USA
Carmela Marino, Italy
Sharon Miller, USA
Gunnhild Oftedal, Norway
Tsutomu Okuno, Japan
Martin Röösli, Switzerland
Zenon Sienkiewicz, United Kingdom
Soichi Watanabe, Japan

http://www.icnirp.org/en/activities/news/news-article/membership-2016-2020.html

--

Eric van Rongen graduated in biology at the State University of Leyden, the Netherlands in 1980. Subsequently he performed research on tumour and normal tissue radiobiology at the Radiobiological Institute of the Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research TNO and received his PhD in 1989. Since 1992 he is senior scientific staff member with the Health Council of the Netherlands and primarily involved with non-ionizing radiation. As Scientific Secretary of several Expert Committees he has written many advisory reports on the health effects of low and high frequency electromagnetic fields, UV and ionizing radiation, but also on non-radiation subjects. He is member of the International Advisory Committee of the WHO International EMF Project and cooperates closely with WHO on the development of Environmental Health Criteria monographs on EMF, currently the one on radiofrequency fields. He is member of several national and international organizations and committees in the field of non-ionizing radiation and President of the European Bioelectromagnetics Association (EBEA). He has been serving ICNIRP as Consulting Member since May 2001, as member of the former Standing Committee II Biology since November 2006 and has been elected in the Commission in May 2010.

Potential conflicts of interest: none reported. 
http://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/doc/VanRongenDoI_2015.pdf
Also see: http://microwavenews.com/news-tags/eric-van-rongen

--
Maria Feychting is a Professor of Epidemiology at the Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. Her research is focused on environmental risk factors for chronic diseases, primarily cancer but also neurodegenerative diseases. She has been involved in epidemiologic research on non-ionising radiation since 1987, covering both ELF and RF electromagnetic fields. She has a specific interest in adult and childhood brain tumour aetiology, both environmental and genetic factors, as well as gene-environment interactions. She participates in the work of the WHO EMF programme, as well as other national and international scientific committees. She is scientific secretary of the Swedish Radiation Protection Authority’s independent scientific expert group on electromagnetic fields. She joined the Main Commission in 2008 and was elected to serve the Commission as its Vice Chair in 2012.

Potential conflicts of interest:
 COSMOS (contract ensures independent research) – Swedish Research Council, AFA Insurance, VINNOVA (TeliaSonera, Ericsson AB, Telenor).
http://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/doc/FeychtingDoI_2015.pdf

Also see:
 http://microwavenews.com/news-tags/maria-feychting

--

Rodney Croft
 is Professor of Health Psychology at the School of Psychology, University of Wollongong, Australia. He obtained degrees in Philosophy and Psychology before completing his PhD in Psychology at the University of Wollongong in 2000, and then worked in the area of cognitive neuroscience as a postdoc at Imperial College, London, and then at Swinburne University, Australia. His research focuses on the delineation of human brain function, particularly as it relates to agents that might affect it (e.g. electromagnetic fields, illicit and medicinal drugs), as well as psychiatry more generally. He has been involved in research on ELF and RF non-ionising radiation since 2000, primarily utilising the electroencephalogram as a means of observing subtle alterations in brain function. He participates in a variety of national and international scientific and government committees, was Executive Director of the Australian Centre for Radiofrequency Bioeffects Research (2004-2011) and is currently Director of the Australian Centre for Electromagnetic Bioeffects Research. Croft was appointed in 2014 an Associate Editor of the BEMS journal, and joined the ICNIRP Biology Standing Committee in 2008 and Main Commission in 2012.

Potential conflicts of interest:
  Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) (contract ensures independent research).
http://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/doc/CroftDoI_2015.pdf
--
Guglielmo d'Inzeo received the degree as Electronic Engineer at the University of Rome in 1975. In 1976 he joined the Department of Electronics at the same University with a fellowship from the National Research Council (CNR). From the 1979 to 1985 he was "Professore Incaricato" at the University of Calabria (1979-81) and at the University of Ancona (1980-85). From 1986 to 1990 he was Associate Professor of Microwaves Measurements at "La Sapienza" University of Rome, where he became Full Professor of "Bioelectromagnetic Interaction" in 1990. His research activities have been concerned with active and passive microwaves components' design and with bioelectromagnetism. In microwaves circuits design he focused his activities on planar circuit characterisation using numerical techniques and on the design of monolithic amplifier circuits using new topologies. In the bioelectromagnetic area his fields of interest are the interaction of electromagnetic fields with biological tissues, the effects of microwaves and ELF fields on biological samples and humans, and the modelling of the interaction mechanisms. He is author or co-author of over seventy papers on international refereed journals and books. Since 1981 he his member of IEEE. Appointed member of EBEA (European Bioelectromagnetics Association) council in 1989, he was President of EBEA from 1993 to 1998. From 1992 to 2000 he was Italian representative of the COST 244 and COST 244Bis projects on "Biomedical Effects of Electromagnetic Fields" and Chairman of Working Group 3 (System Application and Engineering). In 1993 he acted as Chairman of the Second International Meeting "Microwaves in Medicine" organised by IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) and by Commission K (Electromagnetism in Biology and Medicine) of URSI (Union Radio Scientifique International). From 1997 he is Chairman of the Electronic Engineering Department at "La Sapienza" University. From 1998 to 2004 he chaired ICEmB (Inter-University Centre Electromagnetic Fields and Biosystems), during his direction the centre was involved in seven European projects. From1998 to 2010 he was Elettra 2000 scientific director. From 2001 to 2006 he was Italian National representative in COST 281 project “Potential Health Effects from Emerging Wireless Communication Systems” and from 2007 in COST BM0704 related project. He was member of the Steering Committee and of the Fast Response Team of the EU VI-FP co-ordination action EMF-NET. From 2008 to 2011 he chaired the Commission K “Electromagnetics in Biology and Medicine” of URSI “Union Radio-Scientifique Internationale”. Currently he is member of the long term program commission of URSI, and Chair of Commission K in the Italian URSI Commission. He acted as a consultant for several European countries (France, Spain, UK, etc) and as advisor for the National Academies of Sciences (USA). He is author or coauthor of more of 60 paper on reviewed journal and 160 contribution to international and national congresses.
http://gomppublic.uniroma1.it/Docenti/Render.aspx?UID=5799b844-ba11-401c-a379-bad7b1b6cb87

Potential conflicts of interest:  new member -- declaration of personal interest not yet available. 

--

Adèle Green received her medical degree and her PhD respectively in 1976, 1984 from the University of Queensland, Australia and her MSc in Epidemiology in 1985 from the London School Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, UK. She is now working as Senior Scientist at the QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, Australia and is a Conjoint Professor at the Australian Centre for International Tropical Health and Nutrition, at the University of Queensland. Dr. Green has served ICNIRP SCI since May 2000 and was elected to serve on the Main Commission in 2008.

Potential conflicts of interest:  none reported.
http://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/doc/GreenDoI_2015.pdf
Also see: http://microwavenews.com/news/two-reviews-icnirp
--
Akimasa Hirata received the B.E., M.E., Ph.D degrees in communications engineering from Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, Japan, in 1996, 1998, and 2000, respectively. In 2001, he joined the Department of Communications Engineering, Osaka University as an Assistant Professor. In 2004, he joined the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Nagoya Institute of Technology as an Associate Professor. His research interests are in computational dosimetry for electromagnetic fields (from extremely low frequency to millimeter waves). Dr. Hirata won several awards including Young Scientists’ Prize (2006) and Prize for Science and Technology (2011) by the Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan. He is a member of international advisory board of Physics in Medicine and Biology from 2011 and was an associate editor of IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering from 2007-2012. Akimasa Hirata was appointed a Member of the ICNIRP Scientific Expert Group (SEG) in March 2013.
Potential conflicts of  interest: 
NTT DOCOMO, MIC (contract ensures independent research)

http://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/doc/HirataDoI_2015.PDF
--

Brian Lund received his BS in Physics from the California Institute of Technology, and his PhD in Physics from Yale University. He is currently a research physicist with the Ocular Trauma Research Task Area of the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research (USAISR).  His research efforts include the study of the effects of optical radiation on the eye for the purposes of establishing exposure limits and guidelines for the safe use of lasers.  He also established the shock tube laboratory at the USAISR to study the effects of blast exposure on the eye and visual system.  He served on the ICNIRP SC IV - Optical Radiation, and is a member of the Biological Effects and Medical Surveillance Technical Subcommittee of the American National Standards Institute’s Accredited Standards Committee Z136 Standard for the Safe Use of Lasers. He joined the Commission in November 2014.

Potential conflicts of interest: none reported.
http://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/doc/LundDoI_2015.pdf
--

Carmela Marino studied Biological sciences in Faculty of Sciences of "La Sapienza" University of Rome. She was a Scientific Research Fellow at the Gray Laboratory, Cancer Research Campaign, Mount Vernon Hospital, Nothwood, U.K where she was involved in experimental studies on radiobiology applied to radiotherapy. On behalf of ENEA she coordinated the research activity Subprogram 3 Interaction between sources and biosystems (MURST/ENEA-CNR Italian National Program "Human and Environmental Protection from  Electromagnetic Emissions”) and was involved in several projects of the 5° and 6°FP, as member of steering Committee and Coordinator of research unit. Since 1990 Carmela Marino is Contract Professor of Radiobiology and Thermobiology and Biological Effects of EM fields with the Post-Graduate School of Health Physics, “Tor Vergata” University of Rome, Italy. She is currently Head of the Unit of Radiation Biology and Human Health, at Casaccia Research Center of Italian Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development (ENEA). She joined the Commission in 2012.

Potential conflicts of interest: none reported.
http://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/doc/MarinoDoI_2015.pdf

--

Sharon Miller works as a Senior Optical Engineer in the Magnetic Resonance and Electronic Products Branch, Division of Radiological Health, Office of In vitro Diagnostics and Radiological Health at the Center for Devices and Radiological Health, part of the US Food and Drug Administration. This group has responsibility for developing,  maintaining and enforcing standards related to radiation-emitting electronic products. In addition, this group serves as a technical resource for FDA field and State inspectors that routinely inspect both manufacturers and user facilities of radiation-emitting electronic products. In particular, Ms. Miller’s expertise is in the field of optical radiation measurements, bioeffects and standards development. Ms. Miller graduated from the George Washington University in Washington, DC with a Master’s Degree in Electrophysics and is currently working on her PhD at Leiden University in The Netherlands. Ms. Miller has conducted research over the past 30 years regarding the potential hazards from optical radiation-emitting medical devices and consumer products. In addition, she has served as the Principal Investigator of two human studies that examined the effects of UV radiation on human skin. Ms. Miller serves on numerous IEC and  ISO standard committees and acted as co-Chair of a CIE, Division 6 committee tasked with generating a Technical Report about Minimal Erythemal Doses in different skin types. Ms. Miller has authored over 100 scientific peer-reviewed publications and presentations and six book chapters. Sharon Miller was elected Member of the ICNIRP Scientific Expert Group (SEG) in November 2014.

Potential conflicts of interest: none reported.

--

Gunnhild Oftedal is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Technology, Sor-Trondelag University College, Trondheim, Norway. She is also an Associate Investigator at the Australian Centre for Electromagnetic Bioeffects Research. She has a degree in biophysics and in 1985 completed her PhD in the area of Psycho-Physio Acoustics at Norwegian University of Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway, during which time she was also employed as a scientist at the Norwegian Research Institution, SINTEF. From the early 1990s, in this position and later at NTNU in her current position, she has conducted research on the health effects of electromagnetic fields. Her primary research focus has been on symptoms attributed to electromagnetic exposure and has mainly involved human experimental and epidemiological studies. Gunnhild was the Norwegian MC member in two COST Actions (281 and BM0704), member of the steering committee of Action 281, co-chair of a COST BM0704 working group, member of the Norwegian Electrotechnical Committee (NK 211 CLC Electromagnetic Field Exposure), member of the Council of European BioElectromagnetics Association, and a member of other Norwegian expert groups concerning health effects and electromagnetic fields. She is currently a member of international bioelectromagnetics organisations, a core group member and working group leader (volunteer studies) for the World Health Organisation (WHO) in the preparation of an Environmental Health Criteria monograph on radiofrequency fields. http://acebr.uow.edu.au/our-people/UOW165419.html

Potential conflicts of interest: new member -- declaration of personal interest not yet available.

--

Tsutomu Okuno received his B.S. and M.S. in Physics and his Ph.D in Applied Physics from Tohoku University. He is now the director of Human Engineering and Risk Management Research Group, National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, Japan. His research interests focus on optical radiation hazards. He is an editor of the journal "Industrial Health", a member of Safety, Health and Environment Committee, Japan Welding Engineering Society and a drafting member of Committee for Recommendation of Occupational Exposure Limits, Japan Society for Occupational Health. He has been serving ICNIRP SCIV from 1998 until 2004. Tsutomu Okuno was appointed a Member of the ICNIRP Scientific Expert Group (SEG) in March 2013.

Potential conflicts of interest: none reported.

--

Martin Röösli is Assistant Professor, Group Leader and Head of Unit of the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute. His research deals with environmental epidemiology and includes exposure assessment studies, aetiological research and health risk assessments in the area of ionizing and non-ionizing radiation, passive smoking, noise exposure and ambient air pollution.  For more information see his curriculum vitae: http://www.ssphplus.ch/IMG/pdf/CV_roosli_ssph_.pdf.

Potential conflicts of  interest: new member -- declaration of personal interest not yet available. 


--

Zenon Sienkiewicz graduated from Chelsea College, University of London with a BSc in Physiology and then received a PhD from Queen Mary College, University of London, for research into learning and memory mechanisms in goldfish. Subsequently, he studied the neurophysiology of feeding and satiety in non-human primates in the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford. He has studied electromagnetic fields since 1985 and is now Senior Scientific Group Leader of the Physiology and Neurobiology Group at the Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards which is part of Public Health England. His particular research interests include the physiological and behavioural effects of power frequency and radiofrequency fields, and the effects of prenatal exposure to ionising radiation or ultrasound on behaviour. Zenon has been appointed to several expert advisory committees, including the Programme Management Committee of the UK Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research (MTHR) Programme. He joined the Commission in January 2011.

Potential conflicts of  interest: none reported.
http://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/doc/SienkiewiczDoI_2015.pdf

--

Soichi Watanabe received his PhD in Electrical Engineering in 1996 from the Tokyo Metropolitan University and joined the Communications Research Laboratory (CRL), Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. He is currently a Research Manager responsible for leading RF safety in the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT), which was established from CRL and another institution since 2004. Dr. Watanabe has been engaging on various topics related with NIR, especially RF fields. One of the most important researches is to develop voxel human models which include the world’s first adult female whole-body model and pregnant woman whole-body model. Another his contribution to NIR is international standardizations, such as ITU, IEC, and IEEE. His research has mainly been dedicated to increasing scientific reliability of compliance procedures to NIR guidelines, e.g., uncertainty evaluation, calibration, and validation, which are responsible functions for national standard institutes such as NICT. His contribution to NIR is comprehensive, effective and neutral for developing adequate NIR environment for general public and occupational situations. He is a secretary of Japanese National Committee of K-Commission, Internal Union of Radio Science (URSI) from 2008, a secretary of Japanese National Committee of IEC/TC106 from 2006, and a member of the Committee for Radio-Wave Use Environment of Information and Communications Council and a member of the Committee to Promote Research on the Possible Biological Effect of Electromagnetic Fields, Ministry of Internal Affair and Communications of Japan. He has served the ICNIRP Standing Committee III since 2004 and was elected to join the Commission in 2012.

Potential conflicts of interest: Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA).
http://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/doc/WatanabeDoI_2015.pdf

--

Joel M. Moskowitz, Ph.D., Director
Center for Family and Community Health
School of Public Health
University of California, Berkeley

Electromagnetic Radiation Safety

Website:               http://www.saferemr.com
Facebook:             http://www.facebook.com/SaferEMR
News Releases:     http://pressroom.prlog.org/jmm716/
Twitter:                  @berkeleyprc

Thursday, March 31, 2016

Welsh Newton woman voices concerns about phone masts after she developed severe skin rash

Welsh Newton woman voices concerns about phone masts after she developed severe skin rash


 / Rebecca Cain
A WOMAN believes a severe rash which covered her upper body was caused by radiation from a mobile phone mast.
Diana Hilary Boughton has decided to speak out about her concerns over mobile phone masts after David Cameron vowed to relax planning policy to make it easier for operators to put up masts.
The Welsh Newton resident said she suffers from electrosensitivity- a condition suffered by people who in varying degrees are made ill by connection to electricity.
Some medical professionals believe the condition is psychological.
But Ms Broughton said she is used to people being sceptical about her condition, which she said was made worse when she came within close proximity of a mast in Llangrove.
She said: "It must be one of the few illnesses were it is considered acceptable to tell the sufferer that they are ‘imagining it’ or ‘making it up’ – simply because the effects are not visible to the onlooker."
She said she has suffered from electrosensitivity for over 15 years, with symptoms such as head pains, tinnitus and pain in her jaw.
But when she started a new relationship with a man in Llangrove she noticed her symptoms would get worse when she stayed at his house, even though all electrical devices had been unplugged.
Her skin continued to get itchier whenever she stayed at his house, and it then developed into a severe rash with burn-like lesions. Ms Boughton then noticed a mobile phone mast 200 metres away.
Her GP prescribed anti-histamines but it became worse and when the lesions spread to the inside of her mouth and throat she attended A&E at Hereford County Hospital and was given an emergency appointment with a dermatologist.
Following various examinations and tests, including skin biopsies, the usual causes were ruled out, such as Stevens-Johnson syndrome and Lupus erythematosus.
She was told the rash could have been caused by a medication she was taking called Humira.
But she said although she believes this weakened her immune system it does not explain why the symptoms were site specific.

Ms Boughton added: "I briefly discussed the possibility of radiation burns from the mast with the dermatology specialists in Hereford Hospital and they said that they honestly didn't know if they could be radiation burns because they've never seen them before."

http://www.herefordtimes.com/news/local/14372170.Woman_voices_concerns_about_phone_masts_after_she_developed_severe_skin_rash/?action=success#comments

Olle Johansson's comment:

Dear Ms Diana Hilary Boughton,

What you have experienced, and still are, certainly very much makes sense, although further studies are needed to scientifically prove your case. You see, already in 2002 my Japanese colleague, Dr. Hajime Kimata, published a study [Kimata H, "Enhancement of allergic skin wheal responses by microwave radiation from mobile phones in patients with atopic eczema/dermatitis syndrome", Int Arch Allergy Immunol 2002; 129: 348-350] firmly linking together skin responses with mobile phone radiation. This finding echoed particularly well with my own published data, having met several cases like yours, and already from the 1980ies I had been able to produce a series of scientific papers about the human skin and it's reaction to electromagnetic fields from computer and TV screens, both in normal healthy volunteers as well as in persons with the functional impairment electrohypersensitivity [see for instance Johansson O, Gangi S, Liang Y, Yoshimura K, Jing C, Liu P-Y, "Cutaneous mast cells are altered in normal healthy volunteers sitting in front of ordinary TVs/PCs - results from open-field provocation experiments", J Cutan Pathol 2001; 28: 513-519 and Johansson O, "Electrohypersensitivity: State-of-the-art of a functional impairment", Electromag Biol Med 2006; 25: 245-258].

As a reaction to dr. Kimata's article, I immediately tried to get him over to the Karolinska Institute for further detailed follow-up investigations. Unfortunately, I was never able to find the needed economic support, but all the studies we planned are now - against your current experiences - even more important to commence.

With my very best regards
Yours sincerely
Olle Johansson
 
(Olle Johansson, associate professor
The Experimental Dermatology Unit
Department of Neuroscience
Karolinska Institute
171 77 Stockholm
Sweden)

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Less EMF less RF computer! Headache free, no symptom low powered computer!

Less EMF less RF computer! Headache free, no symptom low powered computer!


News from Sarah Rachel:

Great news! Here is a Less EMF less RF computer! Headache free, no symptom low powered computer!

It is called Intel NUC computer kit. It is a low powered computer. The only one I have no symptoms, I have tried 20 computers, returned 3 computers. 
I bought this on amazon, the lowest price, it is DCCP847DYE is the model # & ordered the hard drive, memory card, & Windows 8 on amazon, brought them to Geek Squad & they installed it for me, & removed (crushed) the small LED light in the button (LED give me symptoms).
I bought an external keyboard & roll ball mouse from Less EMF store. I got a monitor of choice, which is an old Apple monitor actually, but a small tv screen can hook up to it, neither have LED lights in them, get the monitor that has only LCD, no LED because sometimes they can have both. We got a usb hub & adaptor to connect to the monitor.

The Intel Nuc is no Wifi, bluetooth, or Infrared (this particular one) so we run hardwired cable for internet.
It is advertised as a low powered computer so it does not have interference. It is affordable. It is a desktop but has small laptop parts, is the size of a wallet. It is used for a portable car computer.
It took us 5 years to research this,  please share the news.

Sarah

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Trends in cell phone use among children in the Danish national birth cohort at ages 7 and 11 years

Trends in cell phone use among children in the Danish national birth cohort at ages 7 and 11 years


Sudan M, Olsen J, Sigsgaard T, Kheifets L. Trends in cell phone use among children in the Danish national birth cohort at ages 7 and 11 years. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2016 Mar 23. doi: 10.1038/jes.2016.17. [Epub ahead of print]

Abstract


We prospectively examined trends in cell phone use among children in the Danish National Birth Cohort.

Cell phone use was assessed at ages 7 and 11 years, and we examined use patterns by age, by year of birth, and in relation to specific individual characteristics.

There was an increase in cell phone use from age 7 (37%) to 11 years (94%). There was a clear pattern of greater reported cell phone use among children at age 7 years with later birth year, but this trend disappeared at age 11. Girls and those who used phones at age 7 talked more often and for longer durations at age 11 years. Low socio-economic status and later year of birth were associated with voice calls at age 7 but not at age 11 years. At age 11 most used cell phones for texting and gaming more than for voice calls. Further, children who started using cell phones at age 7 years were more likely to be heavy cell phone voice users at age 11 years, making early use a marker for higher cumulative exposure regardless of year of birth.

As cell phone technology continues to advance, new use patterns will continue to emerge, and exposure assessment research among children must reflect these trends.

http://1.usa.gov/1MNvgIQ

Excerpts
... between 2000 and 2014, the number of active cell phone subscriptions increased from 700 million to nearly 7 billion, among a global population of 7.2 billion people.

Despite the many benefits of this technology, there remain questions about its safety. There is public concern about harmful effects of cell phone use, especially forpotentially vulnerable populations such as children ... Some research also suggests that cell phone use could lead to changes in behavior and cognition, with the potential to affect learning and academic performance among children and adolescents.

In general, the research suggests that cell phone use among children and teenagers is quite common and that they are engaging in a variety of activities on cell phones besides voice calls. However, it is difficult to assess trends in cell phone use over time among these younger users with the existing cross-sectional data because the studies were carried out in different populations and cannot be compared directly.

Cell phone use in the DNBC has so far been assessed at two time points, when the child was 7 years old and again when the child was 11 years old. The age-7 wave of data collection began in April of 2005 and was completed in February of 2011.

When the children reached 11 years of age, a new wave of data collection began in July of 2010 and completed in August of 2014. All mothers and children who were still enrolled in the DNBC were invited to complete the age-11 questionnaires, regardless of their participation in the age-7 wave of data collection. 


There were differences in cell phone use between boys and girls, with boys being less likely to use cell phones for communication than girls. Boys were not only less likely to use a cell phone according to mothers’ reports, but at age 11 years, they also self-reported lighter cell phone voice call usage than girls, both in terms of frequency and duration of calls. Although only a small percentage (5%) of children reported keeping their phone in bed with them at night, girls represented the majority of these children. Although only a small percentage of children (<3 activity="" also="" as="" be="" bluetooth="" boys.="" boys="" br="" but="" by="" children="" dominated="" first="" games="" girls.="" girls="" hands-free="" headphones="" kind="" likely="" messaging="" more="" most="" of="" on="" or="" percent="" performed="" phone="" phones="" playing="" ranked="" report="" reported="" second-most="" second="" sixty-eight="" some="" speakerphone="" speaking="" technology="" text="" than="" the="" their="" they="" this="" to="" using="" was="" were="" when="" while="">
With the rapid growth of cell phone use and its increasing popularity among children, our results are in line with societal trends. Our prospective evaluation of cell phone use over time provides information to guide exposure assessment methods and analyses in future epidemiologic studies of cell phone use among children. In particular, our findings suggest that studies among children should consider cell phone use both prior to and during adolescence and include assessments of various cell phone activities besides voice calls, including text messaging and gaming. Although our study did not directly assess additional cell phone activities such as social media and internet usage, we also expect these activities to be popular among older children and adolescents. As cell phone technology continues to advance, new use patterns will continue to emerge.

--

Joel M. Moskowitz, Ph.D., Director
Center for Family and Community Health
School of Public Health
University of California, Berkeley

Electromagnetic Radiation Safety

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Monday, March 28, 2016

Argentina seeks a national law against electromagnetic pollution (Argentina busca una ley nacional contra la contaminación electromagnética)

Argentina seeks a national law against electromagnetic pollution


A project limits the maximum levels of radiation, and states that in schools and hospitals Internet connections should be wired. Antenna installations will be subject to public consultation. Mercedinos in the backroom
Claudio Fabián Guevara
In the Chamber of Deputies a bill to prevent, reduce, control and sanction electromagnetic pollution it was presented. The text is titled "minimum prevention and control of electromagnetic pollution" and was presented by Deputy Gabriela Troiano with accompanying Carlos Rubin, Diana Conti and Gailard Carolina. It has the support of many NGOs, trade unions and neighborhood organizations.
The project aims to provide a regulatory framework to "radio infrastructure with radiant systems, antennas and all installations capable of generating electromagnetic radiation" in order to "ensure the protection of public health" considering "both thermal effects as biological ".
The parliamentary initiative seek to respond to widespread public demand in the country and the world, which has caused hundreds of protests, lawsuits and petitions to the authorities against uncontrolled deployment of cellular antennas, power lines and other factors electromagnetic pollution.
The law part of a solid scientific basis on the effects of electromagnetic pollution on health and behavior, and establishes measures and concepts that emparentan with other legal initiatives along the same lines in other countries.
Among its most important aspects, the bill provides that the irradiating devices should be installed at a minimum distance of 100 meters from inhabited areas. Limits the maximum radiation levels 10 μW / cm² (1000 microwatts) for analog modulation, and 0.1 μW / cm² for digital modulation signals. Also defined as "population exposure" to situations in which the public is exposed to radiation sources and can not exercise control over this, and as "immission" radiation resulting from all sources of electromagnetic radiation present in a place .
The briefing Deputies, when the law was introduced.
The briefing Deputies, when the law was introduced.
►Sin wifi in schools and hospitals
In buildings used for health, education and cultural uses intensive protective measures should be applied. installing infrastructure capable of emitting radiation or generate electromagnetic fields within and less than one hundred (100) meters of green spaces, health, educational, sporting and cultural institutions with public access is prohibited. In education and health facilities only wired connections to data networks and Internet access may be used. In hospitals phones may not be used in areas that health authorities have higher health risk.
It is mandatory for all manufacturers or importers of equipment or any product or device capable of producing electromagnetic emissions, including technical specifications stating where radiation levels they generate. It should also include a label warning on harmful to human health that exposure to such levels can cause consequences.
The companies providing communication services must in marketing mobile phone products, including delivery of accessories or attenuators elements of radiation to the human body. Report on the packaging of the product on the risks posed to human health, the use of mobile phones, specifically indicating no recommendation for use by children.
antennas-cell-phones
France will make a census of antennas and a measurement of fields across the country.
►Instalación antenna: public consultation
The articles of the law provides that to authorize the installation of an antenna, you must perform an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), communicate by letter to the owners and tenants of all properties that are within a radius of 100 meters site, the technical characteristics of the assembly and call date of the public hearing and the publication of these same background in newspaper massive scope in the locality.
The enforcement authority must explain, in the grounds of the administrative act authorizing installation, how has taken into account the views of citizens gathered at the Public Hearing.
All infrastructures likely to emit non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation, installed prior to the effective date of this Act or installed, should be modified and use the best available technology to be consistent with the standards established in this law.
In addition, the Registry of Emission Sources Non-Ionizing Electromagnetic Radiation is created. It must contain complete and updated information at least on technical aspects of the antenna array, and keep it updated on a website.
the Advisory Council on Electromagnetic Pollution is also created, whose function is to provide the same scientific, technical and socio-economic and recommend action and control measures conducive to the achievement of the objectives of this law. The Council shall be composed of scientists, experts and renowned researchers on electromagnetic fields and their effects on health.
The law establishes a series of strong penalties for companies and individuals offenders. It will be the enforcement authority of this Act the agency's Office, the provinces and the city of Buenos Aires determined to act in the area of ​​each jurisdiction.
►Mercedinos in the backroom
Some mercedinos participated in the backroom of the project.
Environmental lawyer Germán Sosena was in the consultative meeting of the project in the Lower House, on March 16, and his work was recognized. The survey on the health of neighbors around the masts, by Evangelina vicoli and Claudio Guevara in 2012, was required by the promoters of the law as a precedent.

NGOs, neighborhood organizations and unions, promoting the initiative

Initially presented in the years 2011, 2012 and 2014 by deputies Veronica Benas and Antonio Riestra, the project is now represented by Deputy Gabriela Troiano and accompanied so far by Mr Carlos Rubin, Diana Conti and Gailalrd Carolina. It was revised and reinvigorated by Aletheia NGOs for Life, New Environment, Responsible Consumers, Network Neighborhood Irradiated Neighbors Substation Sobral Ezpeleta, Rigolleau Assembly, CTA Autonomous Province of Buenos Aires, ATE Province of Buenos Aires, Neighbors Autoconvocados Campo Quijano ( Salta), autoconvocados Neighborhood Gral. Guemes (Salta), AVDA Association Vecinal in Defense of General Environment. Cerri (Bahia Blanca), Development Society and Culture Villa Amaducci (Bahia Blanca), Sociedad de Fomento Ing. Pedro Pico, Help 'I "Help the leukemic" (Bahia Blanca), Self-Organized Neighbors of Gral. Roca, Children's Forum Bahia Blanca, FUNAM, Dr. Enrique Finochietto Neighborhood Association Autonomous City, District Environment NGO (Tornquist), UETTEL (Union of employees and telecommunications technicians) and Environmental Health in Action Bahia Blanca, with the invaluable support of SERPAJ Service Peace and Justice headed by Dr. Adolfo Perez Esquivel.

Argentina busca una ley nacional contra la contaminación electromagnética

Un proyecto limita los niveles máximos de radiación, y establece que en escuelas y hospitales las conexiones de internet deben ser alámbricas. Las instalaciones de antenas serán sometidas a consulta pública. Mercedinos en la trastienda
Por Claudio Fabián Guevara
En la Cámara de Diputados de la Nación se presentó un proyecto de ley para prevenir, reducir, controlar y sancionar la contaminación electromagnética. El texto se titula “Presupuestos mínimos de prevención y control de la contaminación electromagnética”, y fue presentado por la diputada Gabriela Troiano con el acompañamiento de Carlos Rubín, Diana Conti y Carolina Gailard. Cuenta con el respaldo de numerosas ONGs, organizaciones sindicales y barriales.
El proyecto se propone dar de un marco regulador a “las infraestructuras radioeléctricas con sistemas radiantes, antenas y todas aquellas instalaciones susceptibles de generar radiaciones electromagnéticas”, a los fines de “garantizar la protección de la salud pública”, considerando “tanto los efectos térmicos como biológicos”.
La iniciativa parlamentaria buscar dar respuesta a una demanda ciudadana extendida en el país y en el mundo, que ha provocado cientos de movilizaciones, acciones judiciales y peticiones a las autoridades contra el despliegue descontrolado de antenas de celulares, líneas de alta tensión y otros factores de contaminación electromagnética.
La ley parte de una sólida fundamentación científica sobre los efectos de la contaminación electromagnética en la salud y la conducta, y establece medidas y conceptos que la emparentan con otras iniciativas legales del mismo tenor en otros países.
Entre sus aspectos más importantes, el proyecto establece que los dispositivos irradiantes deben instalarse a una distancia mínima de 100 metros de áreas habitadas. Limita los niveles máximos de radiación a 10 µW/cm² (1000 microvatios) para señales de modulación analógica, y 0,1 µW/cm² para señales de modulación digital. También define como “exposición poblacional” a las situaciones en las que el público está expuesto a fuentes de radiación y no pueden ejercer control sobre esto, y como “inmisión”, a la radiación resultante de todas las fuentes de radiación electromagnéticas presentes en un lugar.
La sesión informativa en Diputados, cuando se presentó la ley.
La sesión informativa en Diputados, cuando se presentó la ley.
 ►Sin wifi en escuelas y hospitales
En los edificios destinados a usos sanitarios, educativos y culturales deben aplicarse medidas protectoras intensivas. Se prohíbe la instalación de infraestructuras susceptibles de emitir radiaciones o generar campos electromagnéticos sobre, dentro y a menos de cien (100) metros de espacios verdes, instituciones sanitarias, educativas, deportivas o culturales con acceso público. En establecimientos educativos y sanitarios solo podrán utilizarse conexiones alámbricas para las redes de datos y el acceso a Internet. En los hospitales no podrán utilizarse celulares en las áreas que las autoridades sanitarias consideren de mayor riesgo para la salud.
Es de carácter obligatorio para todos los fabricantes o importadores de equipamiento o cualquier producto o dispositivo susceptibles de producir emisiones electromagnéticas, la inclusión de las especificaciones técnicas dónde consten los niveles de radiación que generan. Asimismo, se debe incluir una etiqueta que advierta sobre las consecuencias nocivas para la salud humana que la exposición a dichos niveles pueden provocar.
Las empresas prestadoras de servicios de la comunicación deben en la comercialización de productos de telefonía móvil, incluir la entrega de accesorios o elementos atenuadores de la radiación hacia el cuerpo humano. Informar en el envase del producto sobre los riesgos que generan para la salud humana la utilización de teléfonos móviles, indicando específicamente la no recomendación de uso por parte de los niños.
antenas-telefona-celular
Francia hará un censo de antenas y una medición de campos en todo el país.
►Instalación de antenas: consulta pública
El articulado de la ley dispone que para autorizar la instalación de una antena, se deberá realizar una Evaluación de Impacto Ambiental (EIA), comunicar por carta certificada a los propietarios e inquilinos de todos los inmuebles que se encuentren comprendidos en un radio de 100 metros del emplazamiento, de las características técnicas del montaje y fecha de convocatoria a la audiencia pública, y la publicación de todos estos mismos antecedentes en periódico de alcance masivo en la localidad.
La autoridad de aplicación debe explicitar, en los fundamentos del acto administrativo que autorice la instalación, de qué manera ha tomado en cuenta las opiniones de la ciudadanía recogidas en la Audiencia Pública.
Todas las infraestructuras susceptibles de emitir radiaciones electromagnéticas no ionizantes, instaladas con anterioridad a la entrada en vigencia de la presente ley o a instalarse, deberán ser modificadas y utilizar la mejor tecnología disponible para estar acorde a los estándares establecidos en esta ley.
Asimismo, se crea el Registro de Fuentes de Emisión de Radiaciones Electromagnéticas No Ionizantes. Deberá contener información completa y actualizada, como mínimo, sobre aspectos técnicos de la red de antenas, y mantenerla actualizada en una página web.
También se crea el Consejo Consultivo de Contaminación Electromagnética, cuya función es proporcionar a la misma información científica, técnica y socio-económica y recomendar medidas de acción y control conducentes al cumplimiento de los objetivos de la presente ley. El Consejo estará integrado por científicos, expertos e investigadores de reconocida trayectoria sobre campos electromagnéticos y sus efectos sobre la salud.
La ley establece una serie de fuertes penalidades para empresas y particulares infractores. Será autoridad de aplicación de la presente ley el organismo que la Nación, las provincias y la ciudad de Buenos Aires determinen para actuar en el ámbito de cada jurisdicción.
►Mercedinos en la trastienda
Algunos mercedinos participaron en la trastienda del proyecto.
El abogado ambientalista Germán Sosena estuvo en la sesión consultiva del proyecto en Diputados, el 16 de marzo, y su trabajo fue reconocido. La encuesta sobre la salud de los vecinos en torno a los mástiles, realizada por Evangelina Vícoli y Claudio Guevara en 2012, fue requerida por los impulsores de la ley como un antecedente.


ONGs, organizaciones barriales y sindicatos, impulsando la iniciativa

Inicialmente presentado en los años 2011, 2012 y 2014 por los diputados Verónica Benas y Antonio Riestra, el proyecto ahora es representado por la diputada Gabriela Troiano y acompañado hasta el momento por los diputados Carlos Rubín, Diana Conti y Carolina Gailalrd. Fue revisado y reimpulsado por las ONGs Aletheia por la Vida, Nuevo Ambiente, Consumidores Responsables, Red de Barrios Irradiados, Vecinos Subestación Sobral Ezpeleta, Asamblea Rigolleau, CTA Autónoma Provincia de Buenos Aires, ATE Provincia de Buenos Aires, Vecinos Autoconvocados de Campo Quijano (Salta), Vecinos autoconvocados de Gral. Güemes (Salta), AVDA Asociación Vecinal en Defensa del Ambiente Gral. Cerri (Bahía Blanca), Sociedad de Fomento y Cultura de Villa Amaducci (Bahía Blanca), Sociedad de Fomento Ing. Pedro Pico, Ayuda-Le “Ayuda al leucémico” (Bahía Blanca), Vecinos Autoconvocados de Gral. Roca, Foro de la Niñez Bahía Blanca, FUNAM, Asociación Vecinal Dr. Enrique Finochietto Ciudad Autónoma, ONG Ambiente Comarca (Tornquist), UETTEL (Unión de empleados y técnicos de las telecomunicaciones) y Salud Ambiental en Acción Bahía Blanca, con el valiosísimo apoyo del SERPAJ Servicio de Paz y Justicia que preside el Dr. Adolfo Pérez Esquivel.