About 30 people showed up for the presentation by Maggi Garloff. Maggi and her family developed multiple physical and mental symptoms of mysterious origin. She experienced allergies, eczema, extreme fatigue and dizziness, difficulty thinking and memory lapses. Her husband, normally a very calm, levelheaded man, became anxious, angry, unable to remember faces of friends and unable to drive or walk anywhere without getting lost. Their daughter suffered from migraines. A friend told Maggi about EMFs (Electro-Magnetic Fields) and how they affect one’s health so she decided to follow her recommendations and slowly she and her family recovered.
Maggi taught us that there are three types of harmful electromagnetic radiation:
- Dirty Electricity ~ from electrical wiring and other sources; measured with a Graham Stetzer meter
- Magnetic Fields ~ from appliances, technology and vehicles; measured with a Gauss meter
- Radio frequencies ~ information-carrying radio waves for wireless technology. Information is digitized, compressed and piggybacked onto radio waves.
According to many studies, radio frequencies cause damage to our DNA, actually breaking the strands causing micronuclei (markers for cancer) to form. Radio frequencies also create cell stress and prohibit protein synthesis so new cells being made are genetically defective. These processes lead to increased sensitivity to electromagnetic radiation. The damaging effects of EMFs are cumulative. The more you are exposed to toxic radiation, the more sensitive you become.
History of EMF & Health
In the mid-1800s, an American physician coined the term “neurasthenia” for a cluster of symptoms: fatigue, headache, heart palpitations, neuralgia and depressed mood. The disease was particularly associated with telegraph and telephone operators. Since no cause could be found, it was labeled “anxiety” and of psychological origin.
In the mid-1900s, Russian doctors first started using the term “radio wave sickness” to describe an occupational illness observed in workers exposed to microwave and radio frequency radiation. Studies noted increased incidences of cancer, depression, cardiac anomalies and other health problems.
More recently the proliferation of cell towers, cell phone use, Smart Meters, and WiFi in private homes and public buildings has resulted in epidemic numbers of Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity Syndrome (EHS) sufferers. It is estimated that 5% of population are electromagnetically hypersensitive. Typically only 1 of 3 people reports “feeling” sensitive to EMFs; however blood tests indicate chronic inflammation occurs in everyone whether they think they are affected or not.
Telecom Industry & EMF Research
In the 1990s, there was a lawsuit alleging a cell phone user developed a brain tumor from his phone. To counteract the bad press, the wireless industry got busy to disprove claims. Dr. George Carlo, epidemiologist & medical scientist, was given $25 million by the wireless industry to conduct research on whether cell phones were dangerous. This study was called the Wireless Technology Research Program. When Dr. Carlo’s research began to produce results indicating that cell phones did present a hazard to human health, his funding was revoked and his work discredited.
Dr. Henry Lai and Narendra Singh, from the University of Washington, determined non-ionizing electro-magnetic radiation (EMR) (in a range considered “safe” by government standards) broke DNA strands in the brains of living rats. Broken DNA strands form micronuclei visible in blood. This is a marker for pre-cancerous conditions that doctors look for in populations exposed to fallout such as at Fukushima & Chernobyl. The Telecom industry applied pressure to get Dr. Lai fired and his work discredited.
Smart Meters
Vicki Sievers, an activist and representative for the EMF Safety Network, spoke to us about Smart Meters. When she got notified from PG&E about the installation of smart meters, she knew enough about microwave radiation to question their safety. She wondered how a utility can have the right to put a harmful device on every home without public discussion, political action and informed consent? The Telecom Act of 1996 put a stranglehold on any local regional discussion or effort.
Smart Meters are harmful in two ways: they have a switching mode power supply so they put dirty electricity on our wiring and there is also the direct microwave radiation. When the Smart Meters send out radiation, it’s in “pulsed packets”, hitting us every few seconds causing more stress and damage to our cells. The World Health Organization calls this a Class 2B carcinogen (a probable carcinogen). Many people feel it should be reclassified to a Class A carcinogen.
Reducing EMF Exposure
Completely avoiding EMF is impossible. What can we do to minimize exposure to lessen the damaging impact on our health?
- Turn off and unplug appliances when not in use
- Avoid Wi-Fi networks at home by hardwiring your computers.
- Avoid using cordless phones and cell phones. If you must use them, use the speaker feature or tube headset and keep the phone away from your body.
- Have an EMF electrician check out the electricity in your home. Don’t use grounding sheets or pads without having your home electricity checked carefully by a qualified EMF electrician.
- Earthing is an excellent practice to help mitigate the effects of EMF. Walk barefoot on some damp grass or the beach each day.
- You can opt out of a Smart Meter at any time and have it replaced with an analog meter. Make sure it’s analog and not a digital meter because that still puts dirty electricity on the wiring.
- Maggi recommends the Gia products on all appliances. Noise-field technology (which are random waves superimposed over the radio waves so our cells don’t go into the stress mode) was developed by the military for their communications personnel in Russia and the US. She feels these products saved her life.
- Eat a nutrient-dense diet.
Please see our EMF resource page here for more information and a quiz to help you evaluate your own exposure.
By Karen Hamilton-Roth and Maggi Garloff