How different EMF sources vary in strength?

[Tiger Lily 813]

Hello, I'm moving again soon and having (maybe) experienced a drastic EMF response (bedroom window was one foot from the electric pole, with wire hung at eye-level) I'd like to know some anecdotal experiences with different types of EMF's, what is significant exposure, and what is less so?
I believe being so close to the electrical wire really bothered me (though the water also tasted terrible in the apt, and maybe mold in one bathroom- so many things it was hard to tell what it was that was making me ill). It wasn't a major power line (which is super dangerous), but it was an old fashioned neighborhood with a lot of electrical wiring level with the apt buildings and tied between each apartment and the electric poles (this was in Brooklyn)- looked kind of messy.
I was wondering if underground wiring is much better? I would think it would have to be, somewhat, since it couldn't possibly be a foot from my bedroom window like it was with the outdoor wiring I've described.
I also have had some issues with metal imbalance lately (took too much iron and now hard to get rid of it) which would make my EMF tolerance worse (more conductive). I'm addressing that as best I can.
I have been in grad school over the past year, and consequently have been spending a LOT of time of my laptop- but I never notice a difference between laptop using weeks vs. vacation weeks. So I don't think that was as intense an exposure.
Another concern is proximity to major entertainment areas. Like I said, I was in NYC, so for example, would EMF's drive me crazy if I lived 10 blocks from Times Square? I never noticed feeling any effect when walking around Times Square.
I might have a job offer in Vegas actually, the school is not in the strip, but not far. I've been wondering, if living or working nearby Times Square or Las Vegas would be terrible EMF-wise, or, if it is several blocks away would be fine? I love cities, so this is something I eventually have to know.
I'd also appreciate if anyone knows of any other considerable EMF sources that I should be wary of.
I really wish there was a way around this particular sensitivity because it can be literally isolating.
Thank you all for your thought, and take care <3

 

[deleder2k]

I think almost all research show that the kind of EMF you're talking about does not cause health issues. Many studies has been conducted. Some show a nocebo effect.

 

[Hip]

There have been dozens of studies on groups of people who claimed they are electromagnetically sensitive, and nearly all studies where unable to find any negative effects from electromagnetic waves (that is to say, the people in the group were unable to tell when the electromagnetic signal was on or off).

See this article where it states: "In a provocation study, an electrosensitive person sits in a room with the source of electromagnetic waves hidden from view: they don’t know whether it is switched on or not. There have been 36 such studies published to date. This is very active work. This field has not been neglected. Thirty-three have shown that the subjects were unable to tell if the signal was present or absent, and the other three were flawed."

That does not mean that there aren't any people who are genuinely electromagnetically sensitive; but there are probably many people who think they are electrosensitive (perhaps after reading some scare stories on the Internet), but in fact have no such issues.

 

[Tiger Lily 813]

Yeah, I don't think I'd be able to tell with immediacy from an experiment like that either. But I don't really find comfort in the studies that analyze the average response because I react to a lot of things that don't effect average people. Also, I never really worried about this prior to having excess metals, but it was after that that I believe I became sensitive to it. From my personal experience, I don't think computer use is a big deal, but I think severe proximity to wiring is. Anyways I'm glad to hear that others are not effected.

 

[Hip]

Yeah, I don't think I'd be able to tell with immediacy from an experiment like that either. But I don't really find comfort in the studies that analyze the average response because I react to a lot of things that don't effect average people.

In those studies, I believe they did not select normal healthy people, but rather people who claimed they were electromagnetically hypersensitive. But most studies found that in spite of their claims, these people were not able to tell when the electromagnetic radiation was switched on or off.

So that suggests that some people may have just become anxious at the idea of ill effects being caused by electromagnetic radiation, but are not genuinely hypersensitive to electromagnetic waves.

It would be easy to become anxious at just the idea itself, because in some people's minds, the concept of an all-pervading but invisible radiation causing assumed ill effects is the sort of thing that may well cause worry. So one may want to question whether they have real electrosensitivity symptoms, or whether is it just their anxiety causing their imagination to get a bit carried away.


However, I don't think it is a bad idea to be a little cautious, especially when you have an illness like ME/CFS: I swapped the DECT cordless telephone in my home for a model that does not broadcast radio signals 24 hours a day. Most DECT cordless phones constantly broadcast radio signals, whether they in use or not; but the Gigaset cordless phones only emit electromagnetic radiation when the phone is in use (when you put it in EcoMode Plus).

And originally I had the two computers in the house connected to the router by ethernet cable, so that I could switch off the WiFi. But then in recent years, since the advent of tablets, it's hard to get by without WiFi, so I switched the WiFi on again, but I placed the router at the far end of the house, away from by bedroom and away the room where I work on my desktop computer during the day.

Also, I never really worried about this prior to having excess metals, but it was after that that I believe I became sensitive to it.

I don't think there is any link between having high levels of the mineral iron, and electromagnetic hypersensitivity; it is far too simplistic to say that "iron conducts electricity, therefore high iron levels in the body will worsen electromagnetic hypersensitivity".

If you want to understand how electromagnetic hypersensitivity may arise, Professor Martin Pall's theory is worth looking at. Pall thinks that the voltage-gated calcium channels in cells may pick up electromagnetic waves in electrosensitive people. The electromagnetic waves he says may activate these calcium channels, and thereby cause some biological effects. Further info in this post.

Pall also thinks that calcium channel blocker drugs could mitigate electrosensitivity, so anyone who is genuinely electrosensitive might look into that.

 

[Tiger Lily 813]

Thanks!