More and more children complain of problems with concentration, sleep disturbances, headaches, or chronic fatigue. These symptoms are frequently attributed to stress, intellectual problems, or excessive usage of the Internet. However, there is simply a hypothesis that in any people they may be associated with hypersensitivity to electromagnetic fields – a phenomenon called electrosensitivity (EHS). investigation is being conducted in many countries and attempts are being made to diagnose and reduce radiation exposure.
Electrosensitivity is simply a reaction of a individual more delicate than others to electromagnetic radiation at specified frequencies.
Research by Polish and abroad investigation centres frequently focuses on the physical effects of vulnerability to frequencies defined as hazardous, in peculiar microwaves (700-3800 MHz) and alternating current radiation (50 Hz). They are easier to measurement than non-specific symptoms.
Invisible threat: the impact of wireless radiation on wellness Kent Chamberlin, Max Fojtuch
Headache, deconcentration, hyperactivity, sadness, or fatigue can origin many factors, hence difficulties in diagnosis.
Symptoms of EHS may include: sleep disturbances, difficulty falling asleep, headache, tiredness (usually after being in city centres or another areas with advanced levels of vulnerability to mobile phones), dizziness, nausea, muscle or joint pain and nervousness, muscle tone, tinnitus, earache, palpitations, heart disease, heart arrhythmias, utmost tiredness, susceptibility to infections and neurological deficits (brain fog) with difficulty concentrating, uncovering words and remembering, ADHD, depression, as well as abrupt muscle weakness or epilepsy. Effects on blood sugar levels (Bevington, Havas, Stein and Udasin) were besides observed. [1]
Since cognition of even General harm to smartphones is comparatively low in prevalence, and cognition of electrosensitivity is even little erstwhile a parent experiences symptoms in his kid that match intellectual disorders of a neurotic type, usually going to consult a scientist or psychiatrist. Staying within Wi-Fi scope or utilizing your smartphone is at the last place on the list of suspects.
Hard and without anesthesia
– this is how we have been operating since 2020. Journalism that is not indifferent. The civilian Affairs Weekly announces abuse, educates and gives tools for a real, civic change.
Donate and become our contributor
Unfortunately, the deficiency of cognition and appropriate diagnosis may consequence in the kid being prescribed psychotropic drugs with dangerous side effects only due to the fact that the origin of his disorder has not been decently diagnosed.
And these are the effects that, at a reasonably fast pace, due to the frequent usage of the phone, being close the router, or the usage of Bluetooth headphones can happen after a fewer weeks or months.
According to WHO (International Agency for investigation on Cancer (IARC)) variable current radiation and microwave radiation have been classified as carcinogenic agents as possible (Group 2B).
However, many studies of both Polish and abroad scientists illustrate a much wider spectrum of these interactions.
It can origin brain cancer Barbara Gałdzińska-Calik, Dariusz Leszczyński
What devices make possibly dangerous fields?
Radiation 50 Hz is the radiation generated by variable electrical current, and the force of its impact depends on its intensity. While this radiation reaches 100 metres at advanced voltage power lines, the field generated by the current flowing in the socket (if any devices are plugged in), the transformer of the working refrigerator or the computer box has a scope of about 1 meter. Due to the tiny scope of this radiation, it is rather easy to prevent its negative effects. It is different from preventing vulnerability to microwave radiation, which can be very hard and frequently even impossible under the present conditions.
Microwave radiation emitting devices:
- smartphones,
- tablets – laptops,
- Wi-Fi routers, laptops with Wi-Fi on,
- BTS transmitters (located on towers, roofs of buildings).
Different from alternating current radiation, microwave radiation has a large range. In the case of high-power antennas, it can be up to respective kilometres, in the case of routers it is usually respective meters. Devices that are held to their head like smartphones or wireless headphones emit radiation straight on the body.
Microwave radiation has physical characteristics that make it very easy penetrate the body. A much safer way of communicating are the popular HF radios, for which the wavelength (physical characteristics) makes it hard to penetrate the body.
Diagnostic of microwave injuries
Electrosensitivity (EHS) is presently found in patients from the USA, Sweden, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark and another countries. It is estimated that it can happen in 3 to 10% of the population.
Electrosensitive – refugees in their own country Rafał Górski
W Sweden's electrosensitivity has been included in the disability catalogue, but not as a disease, but as a alleged functional disability, i.e. failure to comply with current environmental conditions. The environment is so adapted for electrosensitive persons.
One of the leading scientists dealing with this problem in Sweden is prof. Olle Johansson of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. He is besides a associate of an global group of scientists who published the BioInitiative study in 2007. This study provides an overview of studies on the biological effects of electromagnetic fields on surviving organisms and indicates the request to re-evaluate existing safety standards. [2]
One of the publications on the impact of electromagnetic fields on surviving organisms is besides an article by Prof. Olle Johansson published in the technological diary "Pathophysiology". ‘Immunisation of the immune strategy by electromagnetic field: possibly a major origin for cell harm and limiting tissue repair, which can lead to the improvement of disease, weakening and demolition of the body" – title in Polish translation).
His work focuses on the effects of microwave radiation on surviving organisms. 1 of the effects found by the prof. is the decrease in immune strategy efficiency and the formation of inflammation.
Strict syndrome as ‘electrosensitivity’ was first described in the 1980s.
The first observed symptoms were related to skin and mucous membranes. People with this condition have complained of: itching, feeling hot, redness of the skin, pimples, eye irritation, runny nose, olfactory disorder, dry throat, cough, tinnitus, ear discomfort, chronic fatigue, headache, nausea, dizziness, difficulty concentrating and associated disorders.
Electrosensitivity, wellness failure and fight against a mobile operator. Organisation Bożena Leszevich
The Irish investigation institute has besides raised this issue: “The sensitivity to the electromagnetic field experienced by any individuals causes a number of disturbing symptoms that should besides be taken into account erstwhile establishing safe levels of vulnerability to non-ionising radiation and erstwhile planning the location of masts and transmitters. (IDEA), 2004, ‘IDEA State on electromagnetic radiation’.
In this context, the actions taken by a Swedish organization called the National Association of Hypersensitivity to the electrical Field, i.e. people who have been affected by the action of microwaves, electrical fields and electromagnetic fields, based in Stockholm, are interesting. The association brings together about 1800 active members and is 1 of 54 associations (2025) operating within the frameworkFunctional Law Sweden.
Electrosensitivity in global studies and statistics
According to its website, the Swedish Electrosensitivity Organization (EHS) is presently comparatively common, but its scale is not precisely known.
In an environmental wellness survey conducted by the Swedish Public wellness Agency in 2015, 10.6% of respondents said that their wellness was affected by the environmental factor, specified as electromagnetic fields, e.g. mobile phones and antennas.
According to Olle Johansson in his publication: In the UK, more and more (estimated as 18%) of EHS symptoms in delicate people are caused by mobile telephone masts. 3% of California residents endure from EHS (2002 data). 8% of German residents endure from EHS, in Sweden it is over 3%. In Switzerland, this population is estimated to be 5%. Quoted studies besides describe structural changes in the central tense strategy that happen under EMF: a benign tumor of the cranial nerve (acoustic neuroma), malignant brain tumors (astrocytoma, meningioma) on the side of the brain, where the patient usually held the earpiece.
Examples of solutions in Sweden
W Sweden has made changes for people with known hypersensitivity which have allowed radiation levels to be importantly reduced in the area in which they reside. The objectives of the association published on the website include a request for accessibility in all municipalities of kindergartens and schools, providing a healthy environment both inside and outside buildings. All parents are informed and can choose a kindergarten/school equipped with wired equipment.
Olle Johansson, quoted above, writes: “In the municipality of Stockholm, where I live and work as a scientist, I am liable for examining the comprehensive problems of people with EHS. In their homes, walls, ceilings and floors are covered with a shielding (radiant-proof) peculiar wallpaper or paint that contains a peculiar cover, stopping EMS from the outside. Windows may be covered with a peculiar foil blocking a crucial percent of microwave radiation penetrated through the window. If these changes are not sufficient, people from EHS have the chance to rent a tiny villa outside the city limits, which is owned by the municipality of Stockholm. These areas have little radiation than others. The municipality of Stockholm plans to build a housing property specially designed for people with electrosensitivity. Under Swedish law, people with EHS besides have a general right to be supported by employers. They can receive a low-carbon computer, high-frequency fluorescent lamps are converted to average bulbs, no DECT wireless phones are utilized in the area where they work, etc. any hospitals in Sweden (e.g. in Umea, Skelleftea and Karlskoga) besides adapted peculiar rooms with a very low EMF so that electrosensitive people could receive medical care.
Some Stockholm City politicians have proposed to the politicians liable for Stockholm Metro that part of the train composition be free of mobile phones and that passengers gotta turn off their phones in those selected parts so that people from EHS can travel by metro.”
Smartphones, Wi-Fi routers and mobile telephone masts – what are the effects on your health? Dr Joel M. Moskowitz, Max Fojtuch, Rafał Górski
Psychiatric disorders associated with microwave activity
The thought of intellectual disorders arising from the effects of microwaves, despite the fact that it is not known, is not new. In the 1970s, any pilots were diagnosed with a syndrome called ‘neurastenic disorder’, which was straight related to vulnerability to microwaves and considered in occupational medicine.
The pilots were frequently surrounded by microwave radiation due to their profession. In the 1970s, features of the alleged microwave illness were identified, which, as it turned out, gave symptoms identical to neurotic (neurasthenic) disorders. Their genesis is usually found in another sources, so these symptoms are called neurastenic syndrome.
Feeling tired and weak during the day, sleep disturbances, apathy, temper with a tendency to decrease, memory disturbances and concentration of attention, increased tense stimulation [4].
What radiation levels happen in schools?
Let us look at in this context the levels of microwave radiation that affects children in school facilities (even many schools in Poland are equipped with mobile telephone transmitters):
- mobile phones the electrical input is between 10V/m and 50V/m,
- Wi-Fi the average strength of this field is about 2-5 V/m (depending on distance),
- Impact BTS antennas, the volume in the building is about 2-4 V/m, with instantaneous, pulsed effects may have importantly higher values.
What standards were adopted by law in Poland?
Current standards of acceptable electromagnetic field for the population are 61 V/m, before 2020, this level was 7 V/m. This standard is calculated solely on the basis of thermal effects, which means the current standard assumes that if there is no overheating of the tissue (thermal effect), the field is safe. Non-thermic effects (e.g. effects on the blood-brain barrier or oxidative stress in cells) which have been the subject of many studies, among others, of the aforementioned Olle Johansson, were considered non-existent.
Before 2020, the value exceeding the electrical field value 20 V/m has been recognised in the labour law as the lower edge of the danger region and has required peculiar protection measures in the form of screens, wellness and safety training, providing medical examinations. It couldn't have been more than 8 hours in this area.
Radiation standards for electrosensitive persons
Electrosensitive people experience discomfort at radiation levels lower than 1 V/m (at long-term exposure).
Based on the BioInitiative Report:
In the Summary for the Public section, the authors proposed the following prudential thresholds for radio radiation (RF) [5]:
- 0,6 V/m (approximately 1000 μW/m2): advice of 2007 as a limit for chronic vulnerability (e.g. in bedrooms or schools) to defend against non-thermal effects.
- 0,2 V/m (approximately 100 μW/m2): advice from the 2012 update. The authors lowered the threshold by arguing with newer studies on the effects of very weak fields on fertility, foetal improvement and cancer hazard (especially in the context of base station transmitters).
It is worth mentioning that the same values (0.6 V/m and 0.2 V/m) were referred to in the resolutionCouncil of Europe:Resolution 1815 (2011) "The possible danger of electromagnetic fields and their effect on the environment"
adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) – 27 May 2011.The Council of Europe has called on associate States to apply the precautionary rule and to prosecute these limits.
How do you deal with electrosensitivity?
As wireless devices are popularized, more and more people are beginning to experience problems associated with vulnerability to electromagnetic fields, especially those emitted by wireless devices.
Electrosensitive people inactive usage computers (noting that they should be set at the right distance from the body), text messages on keyboard phones working on lower frequency bands (2G), usage the cable Internet, landline phones and applications that let to make calls via the cable internet.
They buy combustion cars, which are not equipped with many transmitters and sensors (they do not usage electrical cars), do not decision public transport (the solution proposed by Swedish scientists as the designation of mobile phone-free zones and WI-FI seems an excellent thought to solve this problem on buses and trains).
Electrosensitives avoid LED bulbs in the flat (not many people know that LED bulbs make electromagnetic radiation that old filament bulbs did not produce), and besides usage gas alternatively of induction stoves.
Dependence on wireless devices
There is another problem worth discussing separately — that is, a serious obstacle to any experimentation by a parent seeking to guarantee the child’s electromagnetic safety. This includes trying to choice up the smartphone the kid utilized for a long time.
He is. addiction and it is not only mental, which, by means of rather complex mechanisms, causes a different kind of communication, but besides physical addiction. Microwaves, due to their physical parameters, affect the body stimulatingly, origin it to vibrate, which the cells of the body perceive as agitation and impulse to make a large amount of free radicals. This process is called oxidative stress. So electromagnetic waves are a stimulating factor, and most stimulants are physically dependent.
Dr. Joseph Mercola: EMF electromagnetic field
How do you limit your child’s vulnerability to radiation?
Therefore, if your kid has utilized your smartphone for a long time, make changes gradually, be aware that addictions can be very strong, and extremist steps and bans origin rebellion and can affect relationships and common trust.
Replace your smartphone with a desktop computer, wired to the internet, where your kid can inactive visit his favourite portals, but without vulnerability to harmful radiation.
Remember, however, that the safe position for both work and sleep should be at least 1 metre distant from the origin of radiation 50 Hz, the computer housing and the power strip. And it shouldn't be where the fridge is on the another side of the wall.
Also remember to usage the blue light filter.
Electronic stress in children: how to admit the problem and what to do – a applicable guide for parents Bogna Białecka
The next step may be to limit the time spent on a computer and the golden means to accomplish this without artificial restrictions and prohibitions are extracurricular activities. Not only do they let you to spend time distant from the screen, but they besides build future interests, passions, and make friends with the people they share them with.
Technology and wellness – where is balance?
Technology in itself is not bad, it is only a tool that is very useful, provided that it is decently used, and real technological improvement is improvement with respect for wellness and safety, not at the expense of it.
Is the increase in ADHD disorders diagnosed by respective 100 percent in the last decade related to the increase in electromagnetic intensity?
Is the fact that more than 550 000 children and adolescents aged 7-17 are experiencing intellectual wellness disorders, and the number of days of antidepressant therapy in this age group increased from about 4.3 million in 2018 to around 9.5 million in 2024 could be 1 of the effects of raising standards and promoting wireless connectivity?
The debate among scientists continues.
Footnotes:
[1] Bevington, M., 2019. The Prevention of People With Restricted Access to Work in Man-Made Electromagnetic Environments. J. Environ. wellness Sci. 5,
Havas, M., 2024. Precursors request to be Considered to advance Recovery from Idiopathic Environmental Intolerance Attributed to Electromagnetic Fields. Med. Res. Arch. 13
Stein, Y., Udasin, I.G., 2020. Electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS, microwave syndrome) – Review of mechanics. Environ. Res. 186, 109445 https://esc-info.eu/electromagnetic-hypersensitivity-ehs/
[2] BioInitiative Working Group (2007) BioInitiative Report: A Rationale for a Biologically-based Public vulnerability Standard for Electromagnetic Fields (ELF and RF).
[3] Disturbance of theimmune strategy by electronic fields – A powerfully underlying case for cellular harm and tissue repair simplification which could lead to illness and impairment. Pathophysiology, 16(2–3),157–177.
[4] Michał Jacek Marzecki "The impact of the Microwave on intellectual functions", Aviation Medicine, 1977, nr 55, p.19-23
[5] A Rationale for a Biological-based Public vulnerability Standard for Electromagnetic Fields (ELF and RF)Written by Cindy Sage and Dr. David O. Carpenter (with a squad of 29 scientists from 10 countries) 2007-2012
