EMF Safety FAQ's - edited

(Sorry. I posted this yesterday, seriously unedited. So much for dictating a blog post into an iPhone while lying in bed with a backache eand expecting it to be somewhere close to publishable. It should read better now, though not Pulitzer material.)

Many people worry about electromagnetic radiation or electromagnetic frequencies (EMF). This is especially true of people who have chronic illness, as many of us have tried conventional cures through the medical establishment and yet we and our doctors have come up empty-handed, continuing to suffer. and continue to suffer. It's logical that we then begin to look elsewhere for potential causes or contributing factors at least, factors that, by themselves, may not pose a hazard but acting in concert with one another can push someone over the edge, if you will, into a state of significantly poor health. We may be coasting along just OK, well enough, and as well as most of the people around us who complain to about feeling mediocre. We begin to take that as the normal operating state of the average 21st-Century human. We all do this. We look around and talk to our friends and ask them how they're doing and we compare our feeling of health (or lack thereof) to theirs, and assume this is the human condition. Societal and medical commentators tell us we're all doing too much, we're all overtired, we eat poorly, we've overweight and undernourished. Even if we feel lousy, we might even take pride in the fact that we work too hard. That's a particularly American boast. "Sorry I haven't called you, I've been so busy…" The Protestant work ethic is hard to ignore.

When we come down with some kind of a chronic illness and our first line of attack, whatever it is, (such as a short course of antibiotics, a few days in bed or a vacation) doesn't bring us back to our previous state of health we may go through with a brief fit of anxiety and blame the doctor. After that, though, the time comes when we realize we're on our own and we better start looking around. We read some websites like Wrong Diagnosis or Dr. so-and-so (for example dr. Weil or Dr. Mercola) and start doing some medical self-education. You come across a lot of ideas that sound weird, strange and unbelievable. Some of them are. There is a huge sea of medical misinformation out there along with perhaps equal amounts of truth. Over time, with some diligence we may learn how to tease apart the wheat from the chaff.

For many people, cruising the Web may be the first time that they've heard how much diet affects health, for example. Or that we don't sleep enough on average to stay healthy. Or, that amalgam fillings in teeth have mercury in them which is highly toxic and maybe should be removed. Or, that a sedentary lifestyle gives rise to heart disease, or eating high-glycemic foods can lead to diabetes. The list goes on.

After doing a bit of study, it's not uncommon to become a tad paranoid, if you will (although that is an psychological term with a specific meaning but I use it colloquially here) about the food industry, the pharmaceutical industry, the American Medical Association, the Centers for Disease Control, the Federal Communications Commission and more.) Suddenly, the average consumer who used to trust the family doctor is at a loss as to why they or their loved one is not getting better after treatment by their doctor or local hospital, clinic, etc. 

Once the search for regaining one's health begins, an area of discussion that typically arises is that of the dreaded EMFs (electromagnetic fields). I say dreaded only because opinions, debate and discussion about things that are invisible in the environment seem to capture the attention of those with great imaginations. Discussing EMFs can be a bit like talking about spirits or astrology or chemtrails. (Try googling chemtrails and you're in for some interesting reading.)

Lest you think I'm making taking sides already, I'm not. I'm just pointing out that we chronic disease patients become desperate and thus willing to suspend disbelief perhaps a bit too easily, because we are looking for relief. We're willing to try unconventional avenues of treatment and will consider modifying our lives (and even our worldviews) if we have to, in order to regain our health.

We even start making deals with God in the middle of our sleepless nights. "Dear God, OK, yeah, It' me. Yeah, I know. I never pray, so why am I starting now? Looks kinda suspicious. Well, I am in terrible, freaking pain that I can't make go away. I've lost my mental capacities that made it possible for me to earn a living. I'm annoying and rageful towards my friends. My spouse left me and took the kids, and I can't pay the rent much less my medical bills. So, I surrender. Hey, I'll even go to church…"

But, as the saying goes, God helps those who help themselves. That aphorism can be interpreted many different ways, but I'll just say it's one of those crossroads that many diagnosed with Lyme disease get to. Not that we have a corner (pun not intended) on the suffering market, but there is a moment of recognition and of taking stock when we realize that you either get back in the saddle and start self-advocating and doing some research, or you just sit down and wait to die. In my life there is a fair bit of both, sort of oscillating between the two, with a smattering of 'ho, hum, life goes on' tossed in for good measure.

Over time, after the shock of diagnosis settles down and we start the long march back to health (we hope) many of us become medical sleuths out of necessity. We also become willing to think 'outside the box.' That doesn't mean logic is thrown to the wind but I can say that without a doubt, I've tried modalities of healing that I normally would not have bothered with in the past. Biophoton, frequency specific microcurrent, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, hands on healers, acupuncture, Chinese herbs, even Big Pharma intravenous drugs through central lines that go right into my heart.

We start reading about nutrition. As I mentioned above, we begin to learn about the serious consequences of food choices, where we live, exposure to chemicals, the dental fillings in our mouths, relationship issues, traumatic experiences that may need to be revisited and processed. We read about the water we drink, the local air quality, allergies, leaky-gut syndrome, MTHFR gene mutations, methylation cycles, and so much more.

So for the last few days because my doctor brought it up, I'm once again researching EMFs. I actually have researched this before and written about it in a computer industry magazine, PC WEEK, many years ago, back when I was a professional journalist. So, it has been interesting revisiting the topic.

As I began re-researching this topic, I came across this link to the official government stance on the situation with EMFs and human health. I'll leave it at that for the time being. It's a long article but I found it useful which is why am posting it. If you are concerned (and/or confused) about EMFs and wonder what, when, how, and who, and you at least want to know the basics so you can have a reasonably-educated discussion with someone about them, this is a good place to start.

http://transition.fcc.gov/oet/rfsafety/rf-faqs.html

-Bob