Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields and Their Impact on Our Health

Our modern technology has brought us many useful innovations. It has also exposed humans to man-made sources of electromagnetic fields (EMF) that have an impact on the natural electromagnetic environment. This exposure to man-made EMF occurs both at work and home.

The most common EMF exposure includes radiofrequency (RF) EMF, i.e. radio waves and microwaves (100 kHz–300 GHz), and power frequency EMF (50, 60 Hz). This comes from a plethora of RF-emitting devices used in industry (welding machines, induction heaters), telecommunication (TV and radio broadcast stations), medicine (NMR, diathermy), and in everyday life (microwave ovens, mobile phones, and 5G—the newest generation of mobile communication).

Scientists are raising concerns about this increasing exposure to RF EMF. It may negatively affect everyone from mobile phone users and people living near base stations to employees of governmental agencies and NGOs involved in public health.

While EMF exposure from mobile phones falls within stated safety standards, these standards were developed using the expected thermal effects of EMF only. They do not take into account the possible non-thermal effects. Numerous studies are currently investigating the potential health effects of weak “non-thermal” radiofrequency electromagnetic fields.

The existing evidence on potential health effects of EMF exposure comes from epidemiologic studies. These studies looked primarily at EMF exposure-related risk of developing certain cancers, especially any link between mobile phone use and intracranial cancer.