URL: https://childrenshealthdefense.org/wp-content/uploads/04-07-20-IEEE-Wireless-Concerns.pdf
NAREN1, ANUBHV ELHENCE1, VINAY CHAMOLA.1, AND MOHSEN GUIZANI2 (FELLOW, IEEE)
1/Department of EEE, Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS), Pilani 333031, India
2/Department of Computer Science, Qatar University, Qatar (e-mail: mguizani@ieee.org).
Corresponding author: Mohsen Guizani. Author (e-mail: mguizani@ieee.org).
Copyrights license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) – Changes: the paper is not completely published here, only some excerpts are used. All other chapters and sub-chapters are present with titles, sub-titles, and page numbers. Some words and sentences have been underlined, changed into Italic, into bold, or have been coloured into blue, to attract attention for a specific subject, and to create a more accessible index. There have been added page numbers, and linked references to the original paper, in each chapter. There have been added copyright licences after each linked figure and table. The linked photos and tables have also a notification in the media maps of this blog. When copying any part of this post one has to add the copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). In chapter III. A. ICNIRP I have added relevant additional information with linked references, in Italic, and between brackets, starting with See also, signed with A.J..
Some excerpts:
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Page 01. ABSTRACT
The electromagnetic radiation (EMR) emitted out of wireless communication modules in various electronic devices have been identified by researchers as biologically hazardous to humans as well as other living beings. Different countries have different regulations to limit the radiation density levels caused by these devices. The radiation absorbed by an individual depends on various factors such as the device they use, the proximity of use, the type of antenna, the relative orientation of the antenna on the device, and many more. Several standards exist which have tried to quantify the radiation levels and come up with safe limits of EMR absorption to prevent human harm. In this work, we determine the radiation concern levels in several scenarios using a handheld radiation meter by correlating the findings with several international standards, which are determined based on thorough scientific evidence. This study also analyzes the EMR from common devices used in day to day life such as smartphones, laptops, Wi-Fi routers, hotspots, wireless earphones, smartwatches, Bluetooth speakers and other wireless accessories using a handheld radio frequency radiation measurement device. The procedure followed in this paper is so presented that it can also be utilized by the general public as a tutorial to evaluate their own safety with respect to EMR exposure. We present a summary of the most prominent health hazards which have been known to occur due to EMR exposure. We also discuss some individual and collective human-centric protective and preventive measures that can be undertaken to reduce the risk of EMR absorption.
This paper analyses radiation safety in pre-5G networks and uses the insight gained to raises valuable concerns regarding EMR safety in the upcoming 5G networks. Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
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Page 1/21. I. INTRODUCTION
THE ever-increasing adoption of wireless communication has created a very complex situation of electromagnetic radiation (EMR) exposure. With newer technologies such as 5G, the number of devices will increase exponentially and operate on a broader frequency spectrum. With this upcoming technology, the society will be more connected than ever before, and would witness huge economic growths. However, it is very important to identify beforehand, if any, harmful or adverse effects resulting from increased exposure of human beings. Currently, there are about 15 billion wireless local area network (WLAN) devices ranging from Wi-Fi routers to Internet of Things (IoT) devices [1], 9 billion mobile connections, and about 67% of the world population currently uses mobile phones [2]. Any unidentified or unaddressed health hazard due to use of these devices or exposure to their radiation could impact the health of people globally. Several organizations at both national and international levels have established guidelines for limiting EMR exposure in residential as well as occupational scenarios. Scientific research on EMR exposure-related biological effects began as early as the 1940s [3], but gained significant pace in the early 2000s with the widespread increase of EMR exposure due to cellular communications. Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) has issued regulatory limits on EMR exposure for the general public and workers. ICNIRP’s 1998 guidelines have been adopted by most of the countries in the world today [4]. But these limits only take into account the thermal effects of EMR and dismiss evidence on the biological effects of EMR exposure as unclear or unsatisfactory findings.
In addition, there are several standards prescribed by medical bodies such as the Building Biology, BioInitiative, and Austrian Medical Association Standards.
These limits have been arrived at after extensive scientific research of thermal, non-thermal, chronic exposure, and biological effects carried out by health experts from across the world.
On comparing these limits with those prescribed by the ICNIRP, it can be seen that the limits prescribed by the medical bodies are several orders of magnitude lower than those prescribed by the ICNIRP.
Therefore, a clear understanding of the differences between these limits, and an assessment of the current exposure levels in accordance with both kinds of exposure limits mentioned above is the need of the hour. In literature, many research studies have analyzed health hazards due to EMR exposure [5]. Numerous adverse health conditions such as cancer, infertility, damage to the auditory system, alteration of blood cells and blood flow, mental, cognitive and sleep disorders, and impaired childhood development have been identified in various studies. We have explored the literature in this area and presented a section describing various health risks associated with EMR exposure. The major contributions of this paper are highlighted below.
- This paper analyses radiation levels of commonly used cellular, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi devices to estimate how safe they are to human beings in terms of radiation.
- The procedure followed in this work serves as a tutorial for the general public who can arrive at a good estimate of their radiation exposure with minimal technical knowledge or expertise.
- This paper reviews several works which have identified various health hazards resulting from EMR exposure and presents the findings to highlight the dangers of excessive EMR exposure.
- This paper suggests techniques for people as well associeties / organizations to protect themselves from excessive EMR exposure and also presents ways to minimize ambient EMR levels in different environments like schools, hospitals, and homes.
Copyrights license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
The rest of this paper is organized as follows.
- In Section II of this paper, we discuss the nature of EMR used in wireless communication devices and the need to analyze EMR from various common sources such as mobile phones, laptops and other cellular, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth devices.
- In Section III we discuss a few important standards and guidelines for EMR exposure which have been determined by scientific organizations/commissions to avoid EMR related health hazards in humans.
- In Section IV we present our findings on the radiation levels present in common use cases of popular devices.
- In section V, we summarize the important health hazards of EMR exposure that have been documented and reported.
- In section VI we describe some measures to protect ourselves from EMR and also discuss ways to minimize ambient EMR in public places.
- In section VII were commend some pro-active prevention techniques which can be immediately adopted at both individual and societal levels to prevent harmful EMR exposure.
- In section VIII we discuss our findings from section IV in light of sections II, III, V and VI.
- We finally conclude the paper in section IX.
Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Continue reading here.
Page 02: Figure 1: Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Sources and there Frequency band / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 02: Figure 2: Most common sources of EMR exposure / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
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Page 02: II. PRELIMINARY BACKGROUND AND MOTIVATION – Continue reading here.
Page 02: A. IONIZING & NON IONIZING RADIATION –
Page 03: Table 1 / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 04: Figure 3: Antennas in common wireless devices / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
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Page 04: III. STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES FOR ELECTRO-MAGNETIC RADIATION
Page 04: A. ICNIRP [See also: ICNIRP, A.J.]
The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) is an international commission which …..
Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
….. specializes in non-ionizing radiation protection. The EMR exposure limits of more than 50 countries in the world today [8] are based on ICNIRP’s 1998 publication [9]. This document provides different guidelines for occupationally exposed individuals and members of the general public. They have prescribed two types of restrictions, namely Basic Restrictions and Reference levels. Basic Restrictions are difficult to measure, especially for people who are not experts in the field of antennas and do not have access to sophisticated experimental setups. They require sophisticated experimental setups and costly equipment. But, Reference levels can be easily measured using simple handheld RF radiation meters. Here, we only consider the Reference levels for general public exposure in the frequency ranges of the wireless technologies considered in this work. The Reference levels at these frequencies for general public exposure are listed below, where f is the frequency of the concerned EMR source. Table 2 lists the reference values (inμW/m2) calculated for some wireless technologies.
Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
[8] “International Commissionon Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection-Wikipedia.” [Online]. Available: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Commission_on_Non-Ionizing_Radiation_Protection
[9] INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION ON NON-IONIZING RADIATION PROTECTION ICNIRP GUIDELINES FOR LIMITING EXPOSURE TO TIME-VARYING ELECTRIC, MAGNETIC AND ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS (UP TO 300 GHZ) ICNIRP Guidelines GUIDELINES FOR LIMITING EXPOSURE TO TIME-VARYING ELECTRIC, 1998. [Online]. Available: https://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/publications/ICNIRPemfgdl.pdf
Page 05: B. BUILDING BIOLOGY STANDARD [See also: Building biology Guidelines, A.J.]
Page 06: C. BIOINITIATIVE STANDARD [See also: The Bioinitiative Report 2012, A.J.]
Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Continue reading here.
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Page 06. IV. RESULTS – Continue reading here.
Page 06: Figure 4: The location for testing was an open field withambient Power Flux Density less than 5μW/m2 / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 06: A. METHODOLOGY – Continue reading here.
Page 07: Table 3: Experimental setup for cellular device / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 07: B. EMR DUE TO CELLULAR DEVICE – Continue reading here.
Page 07: Figure 5: EMR results pertaining to cellular devices / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 08: 1) 2G/3G/4G Phone call
Page 08: 2) 3G/4G Data Streaming
Page 08: 3) 5G and beyond
Page 09: Table 4: Experimental setup for Wi-Fi device / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 09: C. EMR DUE TO WI-FI DEVICES – Continue reading here.
Page 09: 1) Laptop and Smartphone connected to Wi-Fi Router
Page 09: 2) Mobile Ad-hoc Network
Page 09: 3) Portable Wi-Fi Router
Page 10: Figure 6: EMR results pertaining to Wi-Fi devices / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 10: D. EMR DUE TO BLUETOOTH DEVICES – Continue reading here.
Page 10: 1) Bluetooth Speakers with audio stream
Page 10: 2) Bluetooth Earphone
Page 10: 3) Smartwatch connected with phone
Page 11: Table 5: Experimental setup for Bluetooth speaker / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 11: Figure 7: EMR results pertaining to Bluetooth speaker / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 11: E. COLLECTIVE EXPOSURE – Continue reading here.
Page 11: Figure 8: EMR readings on different parts of the body whilewearing bluetooth earphones (inμW/m2) / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 11: Figure 9: EMR readings on different parts of the body whilewearing a smartwatch (inμW/m2). / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 12: Figure 10: Placement of different devices in a collectiveexposure scenario (inμW/m2). / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 12: Figure 11: EMR readings at different points of in a collectiveexposure scenario (inμW/m2). / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
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Page 12: V. HEALTH RISKS AND HAZARDS OF EMR EXPOSURE – Continue reading here.
Page 13: A. CANCER
Page 13: B. PREGNANCY AND INFERTILITY
Page 13: C. AUDITORY SYSTEM DAMAGE
Page 14: D. EFFECTS ON CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT
Page 14: E. BLOOD RELATED DISORDER
Page 14: F. DNA DAMAGE
Page 14: G. EFFECTS ON MENTAL AND COGNITIVE HEALTH
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Page 14: VI. PROTECTIVE MEASURES AND AMBIENT EMR MINIMIZATION – Continue reading here.
Page 15: A. PROTECTIVE MEASURES
Page 15: 1) EMR Absorbing Clothes
Page 15: 2) EMR Absorbing/Reflecting Paint
Page 15: 3) Aerogels
Page 16: Figure 12: Performance of EMR absorbing paints [42]. / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 16: Figure 13: RL vs frequency of 3D-PPy aerogel (thickness varying from 1.5 to 5.0 mm). / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 16: Table 6: Comparison of different aerogels / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 17: B. AMBIENT EMR MINIMIZATION – Continue reading here.
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Page 17: VII. PROACTIVE PREVENTIVE TECHNIQUE – Continue reading here.
Page 18: VIII. DISCUSSION – Continue reading here.
Page 18: IX. CONCLUSIONS – Continue reading here.
Page 19: Table 7: Recommendations for using Cellular, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth devices. / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Page 19: REFERENCES: 58 – Continue reading here.
Page 21: The Scientists
Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
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Additional:
Electromagnetic Radiation due to Cellular, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technologies: How safe are we?
Shared on LinkedIn by Joel Moskowitz, PhD, Director at UC Berkeley Center for Family and Community Health : March 3, 2020
PDF: https://childrenshealthdefense.org/wp-content/uploads/04-07-20-IEEE-Wireless-Concerns.pdf
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Figures and Tables
The figures and tables as presented are to be found in the index above, via a link. / Copyright license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
— Electromagnetic Radiation due toCellular, Wi-Fi and Bluetoothtechnologies: How safe are we? — NAREN1, ANUBHV ELHENCE1, VINAY CHAMOLA.1, AND MOHSEN GUIZANI2(FELLOW,IEEE) — https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=9016183 —
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. For more information, see https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ —
