The evidence presented above suggests that there are credible risks of biological interference effects for frequencies planned for 5G, occurring well-below ICNIRP reference limits. Given the ubiquitous and often non-consensual nature of man-made wireless radiation exposures, the presence of even a small number of significant bioeffects requires follow up with more focused research.
The communication of existing investigations has not been fully clear or transparent. It is the responsibility of government review panels, regulatory bodies, scientists, public advocates, industry and policy makers to clearly communicate the research and its implications, so as to ensure that no fallacious conclusions can be drawn. If these are allowed to continue, both those delivering the message and the unsuspecting billions using their new 5G devices may be led in a direction that places global public and environmental health at risk.
The mmWave evidence base that has been made visible in this article suggests that plausible health effects cannot be ruled out, and that urgent action is needed on two fronts:
2. Precautionary actions to be taken by policy makers via use of risk aversion strategies such as the actions recommended in an EU commissioned report [(47), p. 152–153]. Risk aversion constitutes good leadership.
The limitations of scientific knowledge imply moral courage in taking precautionary action in time to avert harm [(17), p. 687].
Incongruities in recently revised radiofrequency exposure guidelines and standards
Lin JC. Incongruities in recently revised radiofrequency exposure guidelines and standards. Environmental Research. 222, 2023. doi: 10.1016/j.
Abstract
The currently promulgated RF exposure guidelines and standards cover the entire range of RF radiation and apply predominantly to restrict RF-induced short-term heating and in guarding against raising tissue temperatures, including the 5G frequencies. There are substantial abnormalities in these putative health safety protection guidelines and standards. Some of the safety limits are irrelevant, debatable, and absent of scientific justification from the standpoint of safety and public health protection. Also, the cellular mobile 5G technology is hailed as a speedier and more secure wireless communication technology than its predecessor systems. The key supporting architecture uses millimeter-wave (mm-wave) and antenna array technology to achieve better directivity, lower latency, and elevated data transmission rates. For radiation protection, it is not obvious whether the health effects of 5G mm-wave radiations would be analogous or not to radiations from previous generations (which was classified as possibly carcinogenic in humans by IARC). The interaction of mm-waves with the structure and function of pertinent cellular elements and cutaneous neuroreceptors in the skin are of special concern. The current scientific database is inadequate at mm wavelengths to render a trustworthy appraisal or to reach a judgment with confidence.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/
Excerpts
As mentioned, recently, both ICES and ICNIRP have published revisions of their recommendations for exposure limits (IEEE-ICES, 2019a, 2019b; ICNIRP, 2020). The revised limits are clearly tied to heating effects associated with measurable tissue temperature changes. They are based primarily on biological data from short-term (6 or 30 min) exposures to RF and microwave radiation and do little to placate the troubling questions on recommended limits for long-term, low-level exposures. The scenarios of a persistently expressed lack of confidence in these RF exposure guidelines are recurring in many parts of the world involving wireless and mobile telecommunication devices and installations (ICBE-EMF, 2022; Elkind, 2022; Investigate Europe, 2019; Koeppel, 2022).
The rapid proliferation of cellular mobile telecommunication devices and systems is raising public health concerns about the biological effects and safety of radiofrequency (RF) radiation exposure. There is also concern about the efficacy of promulgated health safety limits, rules, and recommendations for RF radiation used by these devices and systems. The recently revised RF exposure limits adjust only for heating with RF radiation. These limits are devised largely for restricting short-term heating by RF radiation to raise tissue temperatures. They disregarded decisions by scientific organizations such as IARC. Furthermore, the limits are based on obsolete information, circumvent important animal data, and even more so in the case of mm-wave radiation from 5G mobile communications for which there is a paucity of health effects studies in the published literature. They are flawed and are not applicable to long-term exposure at low levels. Instead of advances in science, they are predicated on misguided assumptions with outdated exposure metrics that do not adequately protect children, workers, and the public from exposure to the RF radiation or people with sensitivity to electromagnetic radiation from wireless devices and systems. Thus, many of the recommended limits are debatable and absent of scientific justification from the standpoint of safety and public health protection.
Cellphones and wireless mobile communication technologies have enriched human lives. It is difficult to imagine contemporary lives without them. The deployment of 5G mobile technology is well underway with it heralded mm-wave performances. It is not evident whether the health effects of 5G mm-wave radiations would be analogous or not to previous generations of cellphone and wireless communication technologies. Without dispute, cellphones have provided direct benefits to multiple arenas of human endeavor that includes helping to safeguard our personal security and safety. Nonetheless, for the judgment on the health and safety of billions of users who are subjected to repeated, unnecessary levels of RF radiation perhaps over their lifetimes, the verdict is still out. It is significant to note that current cellphones have SARs ranging from 0.2 to 0.5 W/kg (EMF Academy, 2022). Clearly, cellphones are operating at a fraction of the 2.0-W/kg SAR acceptable to ICNIRP and IEEE-ICES. It is conceivable that forthcoming developments could enable cellphone functions including data and video operations at much lower exposure levels. The practice of ALARA — as low as reasonably achievable — should be followed for RF health and safety when confronted with such divergent assessments of wireless RF radiation.
This systematic review analyzed the experimental data extracted from 27 eligible articles regarding the onset of neoplasms in laboratory rodents exposed to EMF-RF; a quantitative analysis (meta-analysis) was conducted on 23 papers. Each study was ex amined for possible methodological limits and the RoB was evaluated.
A total of 25 organs/tumors were analyzed for malignant tumors and 16 for benign tumors to assess the confidence in the body of evidence of the carcinogenic effects. Starting from a “high quality” grade, a general feature for randomized in vivo studies [5], all items underwent a quality downgrade due to “serious” or “very serious” limitations in the experimental design, mainly caused by a low number of animals in sham groups.
A further downgrade was determined by the classification of all studies as “some con cerns” for bias, even without taking into account the conflict of interest. The results obtained after subgrouping analysis by species (rats vs. mice) allowed an upgrade of the certainty of the evidence for many types of malignant and benign tumors. The lack of a dose–response relationship in all the analyzed samples did not allow for further upgrades.
Overall, these evaluations have determined a confidence rating from very low (heart sample for malignant tumors and CNS sample for benign ones) to moderate, resulting in 28 of 34 inadequate or insufficient health evidence for a definitive assessment of the association between EMF-RF exposure and carcinogenesis in vivo. This lack of certainty in the conclusions mainly derives from a very cautious GRADE approach, which does not appear entirely justified in this case given that the considered articles present a good homogeneity, both in the methods and in the results, providing adequate answers for the aims of this study. In this regard, it should be considered that, although in recent years the use of systematic reviews has been extended to experimental laboratory studies, the main guidelines [4,5] were developed considering the clinical tri- als. The different approach between clinical and laboratory works has highlighted some methodological difficulties for the application of grade procedures, which could be better analyzed in order to improve the guidelines for the future systematic reviews on animal studies. Furthermore, it should be considered that the inclusion of only English-language papers may have represented a limitation of this systematic review.
In conclusion, the inadequate/insufficient health evidence found does not allow this systematic review to give additional information for the integration of present regulatory frameworks. Otherwise, this review updates the state of the art of research on in vivo RF-EMF experiments related to carcinogenesis and, for future research in this field, it emphasizes the need of an appropriate experimental design that takes into account the animal number and the sample number used for the sham control groups.
Future work will be the update of this review as required in [4]; in fact, the question of this review is of continuing importance to decision makers and the availability of new data or new methods would have a meaningful impact on the review findings. Moreover, a review update provides an opportunity for the scope, eligibility criteria and methods used in the review to be revised.
In conclusion, the results of the investigations were inconclusive, and in fact, indicated little or no association between the exposure to RFR with that of radiation and cancer. But NTP reported that RFR causes cancer in experimental animals. Nevertheless, it should also be pointed out in several epidemiological studies where weak association between carcinogenicity and RFR was observed. All the more reasons that the effects and the risk associated with the exposure to mobile phones were not consistent and didn’t show any regular pattern. Studies on the exposure in children were also very limited. This discussion was intended to answer whether there’s a health risk involved with the use of mobile phones, but at this stage, the review has not all the answers. The good thing is, several researchers are working on this field, and with more studies we’ll surely get better clarity on the subject. Although there’s little doubt of the risks involved with mobile phone usage, and therefore, this review indicates that precautions are needed while using mobile phones. Although the available evidences do not provide a link between the exposure to RFR and microwave radiation and its effect on human health, at this moment, it’s not possible to state otherwise as well. In the case of cancer, only the studies that were conducted for more extended period of time able to indicate any association between the use of mobile phone and cancer, especially brain cancer. The above studies suggested that GSM operated mobile phones have significant effect in comparison to CDMA operated mobile phones. As mobile phones have become an integral part of our everyday life, and so, it’s even more critical today to study their effects on the human body. To conclude, it’s time for government agencies and concerned bodies to understand the potentially harmful effects of RFR and to consider preventive actions like use of good phone brands keeping health and safety at priorities, use of Bluetooth (hands-free devices) and mobile phones having minimum SAR value. Animal studies for longer period of time are needed to execute for the probable health effects. There are no useful data available regarding RF; thus only data suggest a health risk associated with RF so far and the research is still shapeless, about both the amount and quality of available data. Thus, it’s not possible to draw any conclusions yet and we must wait for future results.
Effect of Mobile Phone Radiation on Parotid and Submandibular Salivary Glands-An Ultrasonographic Study
Yendluru, MS. Rana P, Sekhar MC, Chakravarthi GD, Suresh D, Nagajyoki P, Meghana G, Solanke S. Effect of Mobile Phone Radiation on Parotid and Submandibular Salivary Glands-An Ultrasonographic Study. J Clinical Diagnostic Research. Oct 2022. 16 (10) , pp.ZC25-ZC30.
Introduction: In this era of digitalism, mobile phones have become a cultural accessory. Frequent smartphone usage results in possible adverse effects from low radiofrequency radiation and thermal effect emitted by these devices. One of the major concerns is salivary glands as the mobile phones are held against the side of face in close proximity to these glands. Aim: To assess the effect of cell phone radiation on the volume, systolic velocity, salivary flow rate of parotid and submandibular gland between the dominant and non dominant side of mobile phone users. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology with the sample size of 100 (50 males and 50 females). Inclusion criteria were based on the frequency of mobile phone usage of more than two hours per day. Mobile phone usage was determined based on patient's answer to the questionnaire. Ultrasonography (USG) of both parotid and submandibular gland was done bilaterally to measure the volume of the glands and Colour Doppler of external background-color:inherit"
Ranjitsingh AJA, Elizabeth MM, Dhasarathan P, Athinarayanan G. Electromagnetic radiations on the functional potential of spermatozoa. Res. J. Biotech. 17(10):12-17; 2022. doi: 10.25303/1710rjbt12017.
Abstract
The growing exposure to digital communication system and tools leads to radiation toxicity to the users. Unaware of the safety measures, even a kid at the age of one starts operating digital gadgets emitting radio frequency-electromagnetic radiations. Radiations from mobile phones, laptops, notepad, Wi-Fi or other devices are reported to be harmful beyond the permissible limit. So there is a growing concern for the overall health, reproductive and hormonal functions. Experimental studies were conducted by using a Wi-Fi network active laptop and live spermatozoa. The exposure of sperms to the source of EMF showed that the activity of the live sperms got reduced and mortality was observed depending on the exposure duration and the distance from EMF sources.
After 5h of exposure to RF-EMF source, the semen quality changed when compared with control. The vitality of sperm in the control was 95±1.0 after 2 hr and it was reduced to 60±1.5 percent at a distance of 1cm and 55 ±2.2 percent at a distance of 10 cm. After 5 hour exposure, the vitality was reduced to 63±1.86 at 1 cm distance and 70± 1.42 at 10 cm distance. The reduction in vitality of sperm after exposure to RFEMF source for 2 hour was 35% at 1cm and 40% at 10cm distance.
The present study on the impact of radiations from a laptop upon the functional mechanism of spermatozoa confirmed that operating the digital devices without precautionary measures and distance interferes with fertilizable ability of the sperms that may end in infertile marriage. The present users of laptop or other digital devices must be cautious about the possible fertility problems from such devices.
Open access paper: https://
We evaluated the effects of the exposure to radio-frequency radiation emanating from the base transceiver station (BTS) on the characteristics of circadian rest-activity rhythm and behavioral sleep variables in humans. We performed this exploratory field study in a sample of 89 healthy subjects randomly chosen out of 1434 individuals surveyed for the purpose. We divided 89 subjects into five groups, including the control, as a function of distance from the BTS. The E-field strength was higher in the groups of the inter-tower region and between 0 and 150 m away from the BTS. The E-field (distance) did not significantly affect the circadian rhythm parameters and behavioral sleep variables, except a marginal delay in the peak timings of the rest-activity rhythm of subjects in the inter-tower and 300–500 m groups. Notable secondary effects of the factor gender were noticed on circadian amplitude, sleep efficiency, dichotomy index, and wake after sleep onset. We concluded that exposure to radiation from the BTS did not modulate actigraphy-based behavioral sleep variables of people residing around BTS installations. We recommend more extensive field-based studies with rigorous longitudinal designs to validate the effects of radiation from the BTS in humans.
Gangwar V, Gupta S, Verma M, et al. (January 09, 2023) Association of Autonomic Balance With Phone Call Duration in Healthy Individuals. Cureus 15(1): e33566. doi:10.7759/cureus.33566
Abstract
Background This study aimed to estimate the association of autonomic balance with the duration of phone calls in healthy individuals.
Methodology A total of 30 subjects aged between 18 and 30 years without any established systemic disease and using mobile phones for more than five years with minimum daily usage of 30 minutes were included in this analytical study. Heart rate variability (HRV) was recorded using a three-channel physiograph (AD Instruments South Asia (India) Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, India) with the software LabChart PROV8.1.8 with HRV Module version 2.0.3 for 10 minutes. Time domain parameters were recorded in terms of the standard deviation of normal to normal interval (SDNN), root mean square of successive differences between normal heartbeats (RMSSD), R-R intervals greater than 50 ms (pRR50), and mean heart rate (MHR), and frequency domain parameters were total power, low-frequency power (LF), high-frequency power (HF), and the ratio of low-frequency to high-frequency power (LF/HF). HRV was recorded three times in each subject that included baseline HRV, HRV during the use of a mobile phone, and HRV after the use of a mobile phone.
Results A total of 30 subjects (14 males and 16 females) participated in this study. The mean age of participants was 31.93 ± 8.59 years (32.07 ± 9.87 years for males, and 31.81 ± 7.64 years for females). There were no findings of significant arrhythmia in any of the participants. There was a significant difference in pRR50 on comparing all three phases (p = 0.036). However, there was no significant variation in other parameters such as very low frequency (VLF, ms2), VLF (%), LF (ms2), LF (%), HF (ms2), HF (%), LF/HF, SDNN (ms), RMSSD (ms), Poincare plot standard deviation perpendicular to the line of identity (ms), Poincare plot standard deviation along the line of identity (ms), systolic blood pressure (mmHg), and diabolic blood pressure (mmHg) during, before, and after exposure to mobile phone calls. There was no significant difference in the value of all parameters between males and females (p < 0.05).
Conclusions Mobile phone calls may influence HRV and autonomic balance. This change may be affected by the electromagnetic field and by speaking as well.
Abstract
In this case report two previously healthy persons, a man aged 63 years and a woman aged 62 years, developed symptoms of the microwave syndrome after installation of a 5G base station for wireless communication on the roof above their apartment. A base station for previous telecommunication generation technology (3G/4G) was present at the same spot since several years. Very high radiofrequency (RF) radiation with maximum (highest measured peak value) levels of 354 000, 1 690 000, and >2 500 000 µW/m2 were measured at three occasions in the bedroom located only 5 meters below the new 5G base station, compared to maximum (peak) 9 000 µW/m2 prior to the 5G deployment. The rapidly emerging symptoms after the 5G deployment were typical for the microwave syndrome with e.g., neurological symptoms, tinnitus, fatigue, insomnia, emotional distress, skin disorders, and blood pressure variability. The symptoms were more pronounced in the woman. Due to the severity of symptoms, the couple left their dwelling and moved to a small office room with maximum (peak) RF radiation 3 500 µW/m2. Within a couple of days, most of their symptoms alleviated or disappeared completely. This medical history can be regarded as a classic provocation test. The RF radiation levels in the apartment were well below the limit proposed to be “safe” below which no health effects would occur, recommended by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation (ICNIRP). These now presented symptoms of the microwave syndrome were caused by non-thermal effects from RF radiation and highlight that the ICNIRP guidelines used in most countries including Sweden do not protect human health. Guidelines based on all biological negative effects from RF radiation are urgently needed, as well as monitoring human health, not the least due to rapidly increasing levels of exposure.
Open access paper: https://www.gavinpublishers.
Abstract
Salameh M, Zeitoun-Ghandour S, Sabra L, Ismail L, Daher A, Bazzi A, Khalil M, Joumaa WH. Effects of continuous prenatal and postnatal global system for mobile communications electromagnetic waves (GSM-EMW) exposure on the oxidative stress biomarkers in female rat liver. Heliyon. 2022 Dec 17;8(12):e12367. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e12367.
Briefly, animals were exposed to radiation emitted by a device similar to the antennas of mobile phone stations with a frequency equal to 900 MegaHertz. This device generally consists of a radiofrequency signal (RF) generator (model RFS 900–64, RFPA, Artigues-près-Bordeaux, France) accompanied with RF-EMF antennas (local made) supported by a stand, and placed horizontally 100 cm above the cages containing rats (Figure 1). The generator’s power was set to obtain a field intensity of 25 ± 0.4 V/m. A radiofrequency probe (PMM EP600, Narda Safety Test Solution, Hauppauge, NY, USA) monitored with computer software (Win EP 600, Narda Safety Test Solution) was used to check the level of RF-EMF exposure at 3 different periods (gestational day 1, PND1 and PND21). The liver-specific absorption rate (SAR) (0.783 W/kg) was calculated using the equation ....
Abstract
The head is the body part that is most exposed to radiofrequency radiation (RFR) during a mobile phone conversation. Therefore, it can be expected that brain cells will be positively or negatively affected by this physical agent. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of 900, 1800 and 2100 MHz on the interstitial space between cells in the right and left lobes of the brain. The study was carried out on 28 Wistar Albino rats, which were divided randomly into four groups (n: 7): sham control, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2100 MHz exposure groups. The rats in the exposure groups were subjected to RFR for 3 h/day for one month. At the end of the last exposure, brains were immediately removed and prepared for electron microscopic examination. We determined the interstitial space (µm) between brain cells in the left and right lobes separately and compared them statistically. The results indicated that all three frequencies used in this study increased the interstitial space between cells in both brain lobes. The maximum effective frequencies were 1800 MHz for the right lobe and 2100 MHz for the left lobe. In conclusion, we observed that the RFR used in this study enhanced the interstitial space between cells in both lobes of the brain. Further studies are needed to confirm the results of this study, which we think will open different horizons.
In this study, we observed that exposure of rats to 900, 1800 and 2100 MHz frequency RFRs resulted in increased interstitial space in the right and left lobes of the brain. This result may contribute to the treatment of some brain-related diseases, but we should not forget the research results that show RFRs can cause brain tumors. Due to the limited number of studies on the subject, further and more detailed new studies are needed for risk assessment and clarification of the observed effects.
Benavides RAS, Leiro-Vidal JM, Rodriguez-Gonzalez JA, Ares-Pena FJ, López-Martín E. The HL-60 human promyelocytic cell line constitutes an effective in vitro model for evaluating toxicity, oxidative stress and necrosis/apoptosis after exposure to black carbon particles and 2.45 GHz radio frequency. Sci Total Environ. 2023 Jan 9;867:161475. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.
- • RF+ BC increase ROS production and have an oxidant-antioxidant effect on HL-60 cells.
- • RF or BC exposure activates expression of the anti-apoptotic gene BCL2a in HL-60 cells.
- • Cell necrosis due to BC was manifested at 24 h, while cell death (necrosis and/or apoptosis) due to irradiation and/or BC lasted up to 48 h.
- • Interaction between RF and BC enhanced cell toxicity in the promyelocytic cell line
Szilágyi Z, Németh Z, Bakos J, Kubinyi G, Necz PP, Szabó E, Thuróczy G, Pinto R, Selmaoui B. Assessment of Inflammation in 3D Reconstructed Human Skin Exposed to Combined Exposure to Ultraviolet and Wi-Fi Radiation. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2023; 24(3):2853. doi: 10.3390/ijms24032853.
Open access paper: https://www.mdpi.com/1422-
Eeftens M, Shen C, Jana Sönksen J, Schmutz C, van Wel L, Liorni I, Vermeulen R, Cardis E, Wiart J, Toledano M, Röösli M. Modelling of daily radiofrequency electromagnetic field dose for a prospective adolescent cohort. Environment International. 2023. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2023.107737.
- • First longitudinal study to estimate daily RF-EMF dose of 6152 U.K. adolescents at ages 12 and 14.
- • At baseline (age 12), mean daily whole body RF-EMF dose was 170 mJ/kg/day.
- • Two years later, whole body dose was similar, but brain dose increased (+32% for temporal lobe).
- • The main contributor to the head and brain was own device use, in particular 2G mobile calls.
- • Dose at baseline and follow-up were correlated between 0.25 and 0.36 for various tissues.
Introduction Radiofrequency electromagnetic fields originate from a variety of wireless communication sources operating near and far from the body, making it challenging to quantify daily absorbed dose. In the framework of the prospective cohort SCAMP (Study of Cognition, Adolescents and Mobile Phones), we aimed to characterize RF-EMF dose over a 2-year period.
Methods The SCAMP cohort included 6605 children from greater London, UK at baseline (age 12.1 years; 2014-2016) and 5194 at follow-up (age 14.2; 2016-2018). We estimated the daily dose of RF-EMF to eight tissues including the whole body and whole brain, using dosimetric algorithms for the specific absorption rate transfer into the body. We considered RF-EMF dose from 12 common usage scenarios such as mobile phone calls or data transmission. We evaluated the association between sociodemographic factors (gender, ethnicity, phone ownership and socio-economic status), and the dose change between baseline and follow-up.
Results Whole body dose was estimated at an average of 170 mJ/kg/day at baseline and 178 mJ/kg/day at follow-up. Among the eight tissues considered, the right temporal lobe received the highest daily dose (baseline 1150 mJ/kg/day, follow-up 1520 mJ/kg/day). Estimated daily dose [mJ/kg/day] increased between baseline and follow-up for head and brain related tissues, but remained stable for the whole body and heart. Doses estimated at baseline and follow-up showed low correlation among the 3384 children who completed both assessments. Asian ethnicity (compared to white) and owning a bar phone or no phone (as opposed to a smartphone) were associated with lower estimated whole-body and whole-brain RF-EMF dose, while black ethnicity, a moderate/low socio-economic status (compared to high), and increasing age (at baseline) were associated with higher estimated RF-EMF dose.
Conclusion This study describes the first longitudinal exposure assessment for children in a critical period of development. Dose estimations will be used in further epidemiological analyses for the SCAMP study.
This study in a large sample of adolescents confirms that mobile phone use is the main contributor to daily RF-EMF dose for the whole body and various brain regions. The correlation between individual dose estimates within two years was relatively low, likely reflecting both dynamic changes in mobile device usage in this age group, as well as uncertainty when estimating own wireless communication use. This calls for repeated exposure assessment in longitudinal studies on RF-EMF.
Senwen L, Zhizhong W, Huagang W, Shaochuan C. Research on Electromagnetic Radiation Safety Assessment of Co-construction and Sharing 5G Network. 2022 6th International Conference on Communication and Information Systems (ICCIS), 2022, pp. 27-34, doi: 10.1109/ICCIS56375.2022.
Excerpts
... Currently, the rated transmission power of commercial 5G macro station has specifications such as 160W, 200W, 240W and 320W, which is far more than the 40W to 60W transmission power of 4G macro stations.
At the same time, as 5G adopts a higher working frequency band and is affected by high-frequency attenuation, the coverage radius of 5G macro stations is about 300m to1500m, which is much smaller than the coverage radius of 4G macro stations of 1000m to 3500m, obviously, in order to ensure the same coverage quality, the number of 5G base stations is usually 3 to 5 times more than that of 4G....
As can be seen from Table I, for the 5G networks of these four operators in China, the maximum electromagnetic radiation limit (power density) of 5G(Sub 6G) base stations specified by China's national standard GB8702-2014 is between 40 μW/cm2 to 67 μW/cm2, and the maximum limit (power density) specified by HJ/T10.3-1996 in China's environmental protection industry is 8 μW/cm2 to 13.4 μW/cm2, but the maximum limit of electromagnetic radiation (power density) of 5G base stations specified by international standards ICNIRP2020 and IEEE C95.1-2019 can reach 1000 μW/cm2, obviously, the China's national standard of 5G base station radiation limit is 15 to 25 times harsher than that of other countries that mostly adopt international standard limits. If China's environmental protection industry standard HJ/10.3 is used, it is 75 to 125 times stricter than that of other countries that adopt international standards.
In addition, considering that China's national standard limit requirements are 15-25 times stricter than international standards, most countries have adopted more relaxed limit requirements for public exposure to 5G electromagnetic radiation, therefore, combined with the in-situ monitoring results obtained under the extreme eMBB application scenarios, which are far lower than the requirements of the national limit standard GB8702-2014, as long as the operators can timely do the pre-assessment of radiation risk before the base station construction and routine monitoring during operation, the electromagnetic radiation risk in sensitive areas covered by 5G
Miclaus S, Deaconescu DB, Vatamanu D, Buda AM. The temporal imprint of mobile phone emission level when running various applications in 4G versus 5G networks. 2022 International Symposium on Electronics and Telecommunications (ISETC), Timisoara, Romania, 2022, pp. 1-4, doi: 10.1109/ISETC56213.2022.
The most significant findings were: a) upload and video call showed the highest differences between 4G and 5G field level distributions; b) 5G emissions are highly concentrated in the lower levels end, with small differences between applications, which is very dissimilar from 4G emissions; c) video call in 4G conducted to the highest slope of field level local accumulation in time; the same was true in 5G, if compared with the other applications running in the same standard; d) on average the 5G emissions showed coefficient of variations of field levels 45% higher than 4G emissions; e) correlation between 4G and 5G strings of field levels was the largest for file upload but lack of correlation resulted for voice call; f) recurrence quantifications showed a degree of determinism present but no predictability; clear differences between 4G and 5G are emphasized while Poincare plots indicated that short-term variability is always consistently smaller than long-term variability in all 4G applications, and vice-versa is true for 5G emissions; h) time-frequency analysis emphasized again net differences between 4G and 5G emissions mainly for cases of upload, video call and streaming.
Both random and chaotic behaviour of emissions was emphasized so we conclude that too short time-series length might have hidden some significant features in the present preliminary results. Future work will be based on longer time- series data processing and analysis.
Jiang Y, Wang H, Sun X, Li C, Wu T. Evaluation of Chinese populational exposure to environmental electromagnetic field based on stochastic dosimetry and parametric human modelling. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2023 Jan 7. doi: 10.1007/s11356-023-25153-y.
This study aimed to estimate the distribution of the whole-body averaged specific absorption rate (WBSAR) using several measurable physique parameters for Chinese adult population exposed to environmental electromagnetic fields (EMFs) of current wireless communication frequencies, and to discuss the effects of these physique parameters in the frequency-dependent dosimetric results. The physique distribution of Chinese adults was obtained from the National Physical Fitness and Health Database comprising 81,490 adult samples. The number of physique parameters used to construct the surrogate model was reduced to three via mutual information analysis. A stochastic method with 40 deterministic simulations was used to generate frequency-dependent and gender-specific surrogate models for WBSAR via polynomial chaos expansion. In the simulations, we constructed anatomically correct models conforming to the targeted physique parameters via deformable human modelling technique, which was based on deep learning from the image database including 767 Chinese adults. Thereafter, we analysed the sensitivity of the physique parameters to WBSAR by covariance-based Sobol decomposition. The results indicated that the generated models were consistent with the targeted physique parameters. The estimated dosimetric results were validated using finite-difference time-domain simulations (the error was < 6% across all the investigated frequencies for WBSAR). The novelty of the study included that it demonstrated the feasibility of estimating the individual WBSAR using a limited number of physique parameters with the aid of surrogate modelling. In addition, the population-based distribution of the WBSAR in Chinese adults was firstly presented in the manuscript. The results also indicated that the different combinations of physique parameter, dependent on genders and frequencies, significantly influenced the WBSAR, although the general conservativeness of the guidelines of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation and Protection can be confirmed in the surveyed population.
To characterise the statistical distribution of the WBSAR in the Chinese population, we established a surrogate model using stochastic dosimetry. We reconstructed parametric human models using deformable human models. The number of input variables was reduced to three via a correlation analysis of data obtained from the national population census, which were transformed to make them uncorrelated. We validated the parametric human modelling technique, surrogate models for WBSAR, and estimated WBSAR distribution for the Chinese population. A sensitivity analysis indicated that below 2.4 GHz, HC had the most significant effect on the WBSAR for males, whereas height had the most significant effect on the WBSAR for females. In the frequency range above 2.4 GHz, the influence of the HC for females increased with the frequency, but it decreased at 2.4 and 2.6 GHz for males. The identified morphological parameters can be used as reliable indicators of the individual WBSAR. The proposed method reduced significantly the time cost for numerical simulation and human modelling for individual WBSAR and, for the first time, presented the population-based distribution of WBSAR in Chinese adults. This study advanced our understanding of estimating populational exposure to RF‒EMF at the currently used frequencies.
Gallucci S, Bonato M, Benini M, Chiaramello E, Fiocchi S, Tognola G, Parazzini M. Assessment of EMF Human Exposure Levels Due to Wearable Antennas at 5G Frequency Band. Sensors (Basel). 2022 Dec 22;23(1):104. doi: 10.3390/s23010104.
Background: This work aims to assess human exposure to EMF due to two different wearable antennas tuned to two 5G bands.
Ntolkeras G, Jeong H, Zollei L, Dmytriw AA, Purvaziri A, Lev MH, Grant PE, Bonmassar G. A high-resolution pediatric female whole-body numerical model with comparison to a male model. Phys Med Biol. 2022 Dec 6. doi: 10.1088/1361-6560/aca950.
Objective: Numerical models are central in designing and testing novel medical devices and in studying how different anatomical changes may affect physiology. Despite the numerous adult models available, there are only a few whole-body pediatric numerical models with significant limitations. In addition, there is a limited representation of both male and female biological sexes in the available pediatric models despite the fact that sex significantly affects body development, especially in a highly dynamic population. As a result, we developed Athena, a realistic female whole-body pediatric numerical model with high-resolution and anatomical detail.
Approach: We segmented different body tissues through Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Computed Tomography (CT) images of a healthy 3.5-year-old female child using 3D Slicer. We validated the high anatomical accuracy segmentation through two experienced sub-specialty-certified neuro-radiologists and the inter and intra-operator variability of the segmentation results comparing sex differences in organ metrics with physiologic values. Finally, we compared Athena with Martin, a similar male model, showing differences in anatomy, organ metrics, and MRI dosimetric exposure.
Main results: We segmented 267 tissue compartments, which included 50 brain tissue labels. The tissue metrics of Athena displayed no deviation from the literature value of healthy children. We show the variability of brain metrics in the male and female models. Finally, we offer an example of computing Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) and Joule heating in a toddler/preschooler at 7T MRI.
Significance: This study introduces a female realistic high-resolution numerical model using MRI and CT scans of a 3.5-year-old female child, the use of which includes but is not limited to radiofrequency safety studies for medical devices (e.g., an implantable medical device safety in MRI), neurostimulation studies, and radiation dosimetry studies. This model will be open source and available on the Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging website.
Objective: This study aims to evaluate the risk of radar wave exposure and to explore the effects and limitations.
Material and methods: In this simulation study, an adult body model versus 1 watt source with a distance of 50 centimeters exposure has been simulated using the CST STUDIO SUITE. Furthermore, various physical and electrical properties of each tissue and organ for different frequencies and exposure times have been studied. The exposure dose limitations have been considered using the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) safety and health guide report.
Results: Total body absorbed doses for 4 GHz, 8 GHz, and 12 GHz frequency, and 6 min, 4 h, and 30 days exposure time, have been calculated as 1.136×10-5, 1.598×10-5, 1.58×10-3, 1.521×10-5, 3.122×10-5, 4.52×10-3, 4.1×10-5, 10-4, and 10-2, respectively.
Conclusion: It has shown that the internal organs of the body and head will be under more risk by reducing radar frequencies from 12 GHz to 4 GHz. On the other hand, the higher frequency can cause a higher risk to the human skin. In addition, the maximum Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) for each case has been calculated. The results show that for this normalized source, the safety criteria have been respected, but for a higher source, the calculations must be repeated.
In this paper, an accurate and comprehensive model of the adult body tissues using the CST Studio Suite software is developed. The effect of EM radiation on the human body was studied for the frequency range of 4 to 12 GHz over a specified period of 6 min, 4 h and 30 days. It can be concluded that the effects are inversely related to the frequency increase. In other words, the longer the wavelength of the electromagnetic field can cause further penetration in the human body and severe effects in the vital organs of the body. The longer exposure time can cause a severe effect. In addition, by examining the pattern of wave propagation in the body, it was seen that in the oral cavities filled with the air, there is a loss of wavelength and the waves tend to fall into the inner tissues which have absorption coefficient. Excluding the body skin, the power loss in the other organs monolithically decreased with frequency increase, and the power loss increases by the exposure time so that for 30 days exposure, it has nearly 2 orders of magnitude more absorption at different organs. The power loss diagram, SAR diagram, and the body organs risk caused by radar waves show the rate of vulnerability of the abdominal cavity and the head. The risk of the body skin disease in the lower frequencies has increased. Furthermore, the skin surface is more vulnerable and the chance of skin complications increases at higher frequencies up to 12 GHz. It should also be emphasized that for the body of those people whose workplace interact with radar waves exceeding the limit point of -10.96 dB, the critical risk of the body’s vital organs increases. As a result, the standard limits should be considered for safety and health of the staff in the radar sites.
Jamieson IA. Grounding (earthing) as related to electromagnetic hygiene: An integrative review. Biomedical Journal, 2022, doi:10.1016/j.bj.2022.11.005.
Abstract
There are a growing number of studies investigating how grounding (earthing) the body may benefit biological performance and aid the treatment of non-communicable diseases. Research also indicates how biological grounding initiatives can sometimes be compromised, or inappropriate, and the need to take additional factors into account as potential contributory factors, or confounders, to expected results. It is proposed that expanding electromagnetic hygiene measures beyond biological grounding alone may help reduce spread of communicable diseases, incidence of respiratory conditions, neurodegenerative disease and all-cause mortality. Identifying potential synergies that exist could enable multilevel interventions to further increase the efficacy of measures. It is hoped that this review will help act as a catalyst to inspire and inform multi-disciplinary research within these topic areas, best practices and policies to help drive medical innovation, reduce health burdens, improve bioelectromagnetic-based therapies, and influence the general design of the built environment and next-generation technologies.
Open access paper: https://www.sciencedirect.com/
In this study, electromagnetic field exposure assessment results of six EV chargers were presented. These results show the location where the electromagnetic field is the highest measured among electric vehicle chargers in the charging situation. They also show the correlation between changes in the electromagnetic field and changes in the SoC. The measured value of the electromagnetic field was analyzed by comparing it with domestic and global electromagnetic field intensity standard. The domestic electromagnetic field intensity standards were in agreement with the ICNIRP guidelines revised in 1998 and were analyzed based on them.
Six EV chargers were selected for measurement. The level of exposure to electromagnetic fields was confirmed by precisely measuring six types of chargers in RMS mode under charging conditions. In addition, the electromagnetic field changed as the SoC changed. Because of RMS precision measurement, a relatively higher electromagnetic field was emitted from a standard charger than from a fast charger. The maximum electric field was measured at the standard stand-type B handle, and it was 430 V/m, corresponding to an EI of 10%. The maximum magnetic field was measured on a standard wall-mounted body and was 46 A/m, corresponding to an EI of 69%. None of the six chargers exceeded the electromagnetic field protection standard.
Changes in electric and magnetic fields were confirmed by the changes in the SoC [state of charge] of six chargers. In the case of fast charging facilities, as the charging power and current gradually decreased, it was confirmed that the level of magnetic field strength decreased accordingly. In the case of standard charging facilities, the correlation between charging power, voltage, current, and electric and magnetic field strength could not be confirmed. In addition, changes in the electromagnetic field were observed with changes in the SoC. Generally, the maximum value of the electromagnetic field was measured in the measurement results by the change in the SoC. This result indicates the need to verify electromagnetic field measurements as the change in the SoC.
Because of these results, the measurement procedure when preparing a method to evaluate the amount of exposure to electromagnetic fields in EV charging facilities is worth reviewing in the future. When charging an EV, the measurement location of maximum electromagnetic field exposure is necessary. Therefore, first, an understanding of the overall electromagnetic field strength of the charging facility is necessary. The maximum value after measurements according to the change from 0% to 100% of the SoC at the location of maximum exposure is worth recording.
Materials and methods: To allow calculations of ELF MF around high voltage (HV) power lines (PL) for the whole Slovenia, a new three-dimensional method including precision terrain elevation data was developed to calculate the long-term average ELF MF. Data on population of Slovenian children and adolescents and on cancer patients with leukaemia's aged 0-19 years, brain tumours at age 0-29, and cancer in general at age 0-14 for a 12-year period 2005-2016 was obtained from the Slovenian Cancer Registry.
Results: According to the large-scale calculation for the whole country, only 0.5% of children and adolescents under the age of 19 in Slovenia lived in an area near HV PL with ELF MF density greater than 0.1 μT. The risk of cancer for children and adolescents living in areas with higher ELF MF was not significantly different from the risk of their peers.
Conclusions: The new method enables relatively fast calculation of the value of low-frequency magnetic fields for arbitrary loads of the power distribution network, as the value of each source for arbitrary load is calculated by scaling the value for nominal load, which also enables significantly faster adjustment of calculated estimates in the power distribution network.
Abstract
Materials and Methods: Twenty-one weaned (21 days old) male Wistar Albino rats were divided into two groups as experimental group (n=12) and control group (n=9). Animals in the experimental group were exposed to a 2.45 GHz electromagnetic field for one hour a day for more than 28 days. At the end of this period, rats were subjected to training and learning test using Morris Water Maze. After obtaining EEG records, hippocampi were removed. 2A and 2B subunits of NMDA receptors were studied in hippocampal homogenates using the Western Blot method.
Results: There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in measures of latency to target quadrant, time spent in the target quadrant, and average swim speed as compared in Morris water maze. However, the time to arrive at the visible platform was significantly longer in experimental animals. There were no statistically significant differences in expression of 2A and 2B subunits of NMDA receptors between the two groups. Evaluation of EEG records revealed that spike frequency was significantly higher and time to first spike was significantly shorter in the experimental group.
Conclusion: These results indicated that a 2.45 GHz electromagnetic field might negatively affect EEG, motivation, and attention, particularly in the young age group.
Sundaram V, Mohammed S, Zyuzikov N. Effects of 150 kHz intermediate frequency electromagnetic radiation on fertility indicators in male rats. Heliyon. 8(12). 2022. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e12228.
Abstract
Background The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of whole-body exposure to 150 kHz Intermediate-frequency electromagnetic radiation (IF EMR) on fertility indicators of male rats since human exposure to this frequency has increased in recent years. Fourteen adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study. The rats were randomly divided into a control and an EMR group (n = 7/group). The EMR group was continuously irradiated with 150 kHz EMR for 8 weeks. Male fertility indicators, body mass, testicular mass, rectal temperature, testicular histology, histometry, sperm analysis, and serum gonadotrophic hormone levels were evaluated.