Maychai Brown

This is the second article in a series intended to highlight findings documented in State of the Evidence 2008: The Connection Between Breast Cancer and the Environ-ment. The first article, “Ionizing Radiation and Breast Cancer,” appeared in the spring BCAM Bulletin.

What are EMFs?
Electromagnetic fields, or EMFs, include two categories of radiation: (1) extremely low frequency radiation (ELF) which comes from power lines and electrical appliances and (2) radio frequency (RF) which comes from wireless technology such as cell phones, cordless phones, laptops, the towers and antennas that support these technologies, and radio and television transmitters.

Unlike other forms of radiation, EMFs are “non-ionizing”. In other words, they do not have enough energy to charge or ionize atoms by dislodging electrons. According to current regulatory standards in the U. S. and some other countries, EMFs are deemed to be safe so long as they are incapable of raising the temperature of body tissue within a 30-minute time period.

Although such exposures may appear to be harmless, all EMF exposures are biologically active in animals and humans and there is growing concern that they could have a major impact on public health.

What is the evidence?
Various studies over the past 15 years have shown links between EMFs and breast cancer for women working in telephone, radio and telegraph occupations as well as for women living near power lines. Numerous studies on men who had breast cancer have indicated that EMFs are a risk factor.

Other in vitro research using human breast cell lines has found that EMFs influenced tumour growth. However, the report is careful to point out that some epidemiological and occupational studies have found no significant relationship between EMFs and breast cancer and therefore recommends that more research should be done.

The mechanisms by which EMFs can affect cancer are not completely understood. A widely studied model centres on the observation that EMFs and light at night lower the body’s level of melatonin, a hormone secreted by the pineal gland during darkness. (See “An Update on the Effects of Night Shifts on Breast Cancer,” BCAM Bulletin, Spring 2009, p. 10.) An interesting yet unproven hypothesis is that melatonin interacts with estrogen and cell signalling pathways to prevent cancer.

Health concerns around non-ionizing radiation extend beyond breast cancer.
There is evidence that EMFs may be a factor in childhood leukemia and neurodegenerative disease.

As our exposure to EMFs increases with the prevalence of cell phones and wireless internet technology, State of the Evidence raises the question about the cumulative, long-term effects on health.

In 2007, an international panel conducted a scientific review of research on EMFs, the Bio-Initiative Report. They concluded that safety limits set for these types of radiation are “thousands of times too lenient.” State of the Evidence charges that North American policy makers have turned a blind eye to the dangers of EMFs.

For more detail, see State of the Evidence 2008, pages 9, 60-62 and 65-66. A hard copy of the report is available at the BCAM office. Also see www.bioinitiative.org/report/docs/report.pdf