Exposure To Low-level Magnetic Fields Causes DNA Damage In Rat Brain Cells, Researchers Find

www.sciencedaily.com...

Prolonged exposure to low-level magnetic fields, similar to those emitted by such common household devices as blow dryers, electric blankets and razors, can damage brain cell DNA, according to researchers in the University of Washington's Department of Bioengineering.

This is an older article from 2004.The research performed by these researchers at the University of Washington are very profound because most scientists hold the view that electromagnetic radiation does not break chemical bonds and therefore do not cause DNA damage which can cause cancer.

Here is what they had to say about it:
Traditionally, scientists have held that low-level electromagnetic fields couldn't be harmful because they weren't potent enough to break chemical bonds in a living organism. Lai doesn't disagree – he simply suspects a more subtle mechanism is at work. He believes that the fields, rather than causing harm directly, initiate a process within the cells that leads to the damage.
Lai and Singh hypothesize that exposure to magnetic fields affects the balance of iron in certain cells, leading to an increase in free iron within the cell. That free iron undergoes a chemical reaction, which releases "free radicals," or charged atoms that attack cell structures, including DNA, lipids and proteins.
To test the idea, the researchers gave some of the rats drugs that either neutralize free radicals or decrease free iron before exposing the animals to the magnetic field. The treatments supported the hypothesis, effectively blocking the effects of the fields and protecting the rats' brain cell DNA from damage.

It is known that high levels of Iron in the body can increase the risk of cancer due to free radicals..Here is a study which explains this:

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov...

Increased iron content of cells and tissue may increase the risk of cancer. In particular, high available iron status may increase the risk of a radiation-induced cancer. There are two possible mechanisms for this effect: iron can catalyze the production of oxygen radicals, and it may be a limiting nutrient to the growth and development of a transformed cell in vivo. Given the high available iron content of the western diet and the fact that the world is changing to the western model, it is important to determine if high iron increases the risk of cancer.

pcrm.org...

Iron encourages the formation of cancer-causing free radicals. Of course, the body needs a certain amount of iron for healthy blood cells. But beyond this rather small amount, iron becomes a dangerous substance, acting as a catalyst for the formation of free radicals. Because of this, research studies have shown that higher amounts of iron in the blood mean higher cancer risk.

Now I find it interesting that the World Health Organisation has labeled cell phones as a possible carcinogenic in the same category as lead.Here is a link to a summary of the report.

www.iarc.fr...

Lyon, France, May 31, 2011 ‐‐ The WHO/International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has
classified radiofrequency electromagnetic fields as possibly carcinogenic to humans (Group 2B),
based on an increased risk for glioma, a malignant type of brain cancer, associated with wireless phone use.

www.cnn.com...

The type of radiation coming out of a cell phone is called non-ionizing. It is not like an X-ray, but more like a very low-powered microwave oven.
"What microwave radiation does in most simplistic terms is similar to what happens to food in microwaves, essentially cooking the brain," Black said. "So in addition to leading to a development of cancer and tumors, there could be a whole host of other effects like cognitive memory function, since the memory temporal lobes are where we hold our cell phones."

Perhaps the mechanism for cellphones increased brain cancer risk is similar to that of low level electromagnetic fields emitted by home appliances?

Interesting. It's disturbing, isn't it?

Of course, if there IS a correlation, it doesn't seem to be a particular strong one (say, that between exposure to high levels of radiation and cancer) but it's enough to make most rational people wonder, "are we really sure that exposure to such high levels of radiation - from cell phones to wifi - isn't as safe as we imagine it to be?"

There's very good reason to be skeptical of the positivistic attitude assumed by the general culture: were prone to get carried away when we feel good about things. This is a human foible apt to be enacted in a culture that doesn't make self-awareness as important as it should be.

Who knows. If cancer rates sky-rocket in the near future, we'll know what the cause was.

a reply to: Astrocyte

Totally agree with you.We as a society need to not get carried away with using new technologies until they are thoroughly tested by completely independent parties in my opinion.

We are now marketing cell phone products to children when we have no idea of what the long term effects of cell phone radiation on there developing brains.This to me is extremely alarming.

thewaltdisneycompany.com...

Video by epidemiologist explains that children are more susceptible to emf radiation due to there thinner skulls.

WOW! The WHO finally came out with a big one. It's about time, for years i've heard that cell phones were developed and manufactured without any testing if it was harmful. We'll have to wait years to find out if it does, by then it will be too late for about a billion people. :Not to worry though... I'm sure the head honchos have greased all the right palms and any lawsuits will be null- just like the pharma companies.

Brain cancer is rising already and it's recommended to keep your cell about a half inch from your head while using it.

It has been from at least the 90's.

New studies of epidemiological data from this country and abroad indicate that the rise is especially dramatic among the elderly, but scientists say that even among the young, the rate of at least one rare form of brain cancer is surging.

Other studies suggest that certain jobs may predispose workers or their children to brain cancer, and some researchers believe electromagnetic fields from power lines and power stations can help promote the growth of brain tumors, although many experts fiercely dispute the theory.

I and most of my friends still believe this theory. I also firmly believe that cell phones and laptops also negatively affect us. Quite often when I'm too lazy to get my laptop desk, and holding my laptop on my lap I get a sharp pin prick or burning sensation on top of one or the other of my legs. I just have be diligent and use my bean bag desk thingy and it works great. I have never get any sharp pains while using it. So there's my study and result. I concluded that something in the laptop was harming my body in some way.

Good info OP, it needs to get out.

originally posted by: StoutBroux
Brain cancer is rising already and it's recommended to keep your cell about a half inch from your head while using it.

It has been from at least the 90's.

New studies of epidemiological data from this country and abroad indicate that the rise is especially dramatic among the elderly, but scientists say that even among the young, the rate of at least one rare form of brain cancer is surging.

Other studies suggest that certain jobs may predispose workers or their children to brain cancer, and some researchers believe electromagnetic fields from power lines and power stations can help promote the growth of brain tumors, although many experts fiercely dispute the theory.

I and most of my friends still believe this theory. I also firmly believe that cell phones and laptops also negatively affect us. Quite often when I'm too lazy to get my laptop desk, and holding my laptop on my lap I get a sharp pin prick or burning sensation on top of one or the other of my legs. I just have be diligent and use my bean bag desk thingy and it works great. I have never get any sharp pains while using it. So there's my study and result. I concluded that something in the laptop was harming my body in some way.

Good info OP, it needs to get out.

Yep! most if not all cell phone manuals recommend to keep them at least half an inch away from the body because the specific abortion rate (SAR)of the device would most likely exceed that of the FCC limit which is 1.6 watts per kilogram.

There was actually a study made which showed laptops when put on men's laps could damage sperm.

www.bbc.com...

Scientists are questioning if using wi-fi on a laptop to roam the internet could harm a man's fertility, after lab work suggested ejaculated sperm were significantly damaged after only four hours of exposure.
The benchside tests showed sperm were less able to swim and had changes in the genetic code that they carry

Great thread!

I've had experienced heating sensations and headaches from wireless and cellphones since a long time ago and I have always suspected them to be able to cause damage. I know some people believe that it's only in my head but I really can't stand talking with my cellphone next to my ear. I always use the speaker, if I can, I don't touch it. When I'm somewhere that I can't use the speaker, I just call back, say I'm busy or text instead.

I'm pretty sensitive to physical pain so I'm sure that many people just don't feel anything, but that doesn't mean the body isn't affected!

"Who cares, everything gives cancer nowadays!"
"Your paranoid, governments would never allow something like this..."
"Baah, we all gotta die anyway?"

All resumes to : "I don't want to look socially stupid, out of the norm or a wuss, so your wrong!"

I'm 100% sure they could find ways to keep wireless technologies while maintaining our health if the public was educated enough and refused to buy technologies deemed unsafe.

I'm about to wear a foil hat, not to protect my thoughts but to protect me from dangerous wireless technologies! :p

A recent study attempting to duplicate the results of the 2004 Lai study:

No evidence was found for increased persisting unrepaired nDNA SSB in distinct types of cells in the brain, kidney, and liver of adult mice after continuous eight-week 50 Hz magnetic field exposure with flux density of 0.1 mT or 1.0 mT.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov...

Among the experiments on rats and mice listed in the ‘BioInitiative Report’ [1], the following results related to brain cells seem to be of particular importance: (i) Lai and Singh [2]–[4]; (see also [5]) found nuclear DNA single-strand breaks (nDNA SSB) and double-strand breaks (DSB) from 0.01 mT magnetic field (MF) exposure onwards in a dose-dependent manner in rats.

originally posted by: Phage

No evidence was found for increased persisting unrepaired nDNA SSB in distinct types of cells in the brain, kidney, and liver of adult mice after continuous eight-week 50 Hz magnetic field exposure with flux density of 0.1 mT or 1.0 mT.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov...

I'm not that surprised.
Appliances that their first duty isn't radiating a magnetic field probably don't affect us that much and it seems that 50 hertz isn't a damaging frequency from what that study shows. Although I'm mostly talking about sound, just like it takes the right frequency to break crystal, probably some particular frequencies could be positive or negative to our well being.

a reply to: Aquariusdude

Nice read but I find it rather unbelievable.

For example, my cellphone and computer use rose dramatically in my early 20s up to now, and I'm now 33 years old. I was 17 years old when I had my first cellphone - Nokia 3310 and I barely used it.

I have cognitive/memory/learning issues from my childhood to my teens. Didn't get my IQ tested at that time but I figure it would be average, I'm not good with math particularly.

WHen I reached 23, I still have memory issues but my IQ was tested to be at 130 and my ability to comprehend math improved. It is accepted that our IQs max out in our early 20s (excluding childhood).

Reaching 33 years old (now) my memory is now at its best as good as the average female in her early 20s, my IQ tested to be 143 and have become quite adept in comprehending math.

I also had this back discomfort in my 20's but were gone completely today. I did not take any medicine, no therapy, just diet with high proportion of fish and veggies last 2011.

I also performed a number of personal scientific experiments in my late teens up to early 20s that inadvertently exposed myself to small doses of X/gamma rays, 60 watts radio waves, and EMP (electromagnetic pulse) that's capable of damaging unprotected electronics. I even got electrocuted a few times from a 30kv source, one of which was quite painful.

But I am way way better today than before all this em wave craze. So yea, I was quite surprised and suspicious of the article.

a reply to: StoutBroux

Your source is from 1990. Cell phone use was barely even a thing back then.

If cell phones caused brain cancer, we'd see a MASSIVE surge of cases because near every man and his dog uses one. We don't.

Two things:

Bioinitiative papers are the joke of the scientific world, down there with Deepak Chopra.

and

Group 2b means that there is no evidence that something causes cancer but it requires further study

originally posted by: Bedlam
Two things:

Bioinitiative papers are the joke of the scientific world, down there with Deepak Chopra.

and

Group 2b means that there is no evidence that something causes cancer but it requires further study

en.wikipedia.org...

Group 2b means cell phones are a probable cause of cancer so that's bull.

Substances, mixtures and exposure circumstances in this list have been classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as Group 2B: The agent (mixture) is possibly carcinogenic to humans. The exposure circumstance entails exposures that are possibly carcinogenic to humans. This category is used for agents, mixtures and exposure circumstances for which there is limited evidence of carcinogenicity in humans and less than sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals. It may also be used when there is inadequate evidence of carcinogenicity in humans but there is sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals. In some instances, an agent, mixture or exposure circumstance for which there is inadequate evidence of carcinogenicity in humans but limited evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals together with supporting evidence from other relevant data may be placed in this group. Further details can be found in the preamble to the IARC Monographs

Even with emerging evidence showing that cell phones are a probable carcinogen some people still say they are safe..I am starting to think that these people are paid by the industry to spread lies.

3 Different tumors in the EXACT spots where he used his cell phone..People that continue to ignore this potential health hazard are ignorent or paid to spread lies

psychcentral.com...


A new study suggests a potential link between the symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and cell phone use.

ADHD is a condition characterized by high levels of distraction, impulsiveness, an inability to remain still, and a tendency to be abnormally talkative.

For the study, researcher Yoon Hwan Byun of the Department of Medicine at Dankook University College of Medicine in Korea set out to discover whether radio-frequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) affect developing brains with prolonged exposure. Past research has suggested a link between prenatal cell phone exposure and the risk of conduct and behavior problems in children.

Cell phone exposure is nearly impossible to avoid, and it is important to know if the RFs of cell phones can cause or influence ADHD. Another variable in the equation are levels of lead in the blood, which seem to be higher in children with RF exposure.

For the study, Byun evaluated more than 2,400 elementary school children for ADHD symptoms and cell phone exposure through the use of parental reports

news.yale.edu...

exposure to radiation from cell phones during pregnancy affects the brain development of offspring, potentially leading to hyperactivity, Yale School of Medicine researchers have determined.

The results, based on studies in mice, are published in the March 15 issue of Scientific Reports, a Nature publication.

“This is the first experimental evidence that fetal exposure to radiofrequency radiation from cellular telephones does in fact affect adult behavior,” said senior author Dr. Hugh S. Taylor, professor and chief of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences.

Taylor and co-authors exposed pregnant mice to radiation from a muted and silenced cell phone positioned above the cage and placed on an active phone call for the duration of the trial. A control group of mice was kept under the same conditions but with the phone deactivated.

The team measured the brain electrical activity of adult mice that were exposed to radiation as fetuses, and conducted a battery of psychological and behavioral tests. They found that the mice that were exposed to radiation tended to be more hyperactive and had reduced memory capacity. Taylor attributed the behavioral changes to an effect during pregnancy on the development of neurons in the prefrontal cortex region of the brain.

originally posted by: Phage
A recent study attempting to duplicate the results of the 2004 Lai study:

No evidence was found for increased persisting unrepaired nDNA SSB in distinct types of cells in the brain, kidney, and liver of adult mice after continuous eight-week 50 Hz magnetic field exposure with flux density of 0.1 mT or 1.0 mT.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov...

Among the experiments on rats and mice listed in the ‘BioInitiative Report’ [1], the following results related to brain cells seem to be of particular importance: (i) Lai and Singh [2]–[4]; (see also [5]) found nuclear DNA single-strand breaks (nDNA SSB) and double-strand breaks (DSB) from 0.01 mT magnetic field (MF) exposure onwards in a dose-dependent manner in rats.

Studies have actually been duplicated with similar results..

www.sciencedaily.com...

A previous study showed similar damage, but it was conducted at 10 times the intensity and rats were exposed for just two hours. That indicates that the effects of exposure are cumulative, and duration can be as damaging as intensity, said Henry Lai, a UW research professor who conducted the study with fellow UW bioengineer Narendra Singh. "In real life, people get this kind of exposure in brief doses – three minutes of exposure to a blow dryer, five minutes of exposure to an electric razor," Lai said. "We found that this could add up over time and could eventually lead to some health effect."Since L ai first reported findings of magnetic field-induced DNA damage in 1995, several laboratories in Europe and India have reported similar effects.

edit on pmq000000pmTue, 28 Apr 2015 19:08:10 -0500080000001028000000 by Aquariusdude because: (no reason given)

originally posted by: Bedlam
Two things:

Bioinitiative papers are the joke of the scientific world, down there with Deepak Chopra.

and

Group 2b means that there is no evidence that something causes cancer but it requires further study

Bedlam, lead is also a 2b class carcinogen..Will you say that's also safe?

en.wikipedia.org...

Lead
Magnetic fields (extremely low frequency)

Funny,magnetic fields happen to be right next to lead..

People like bedlam would have you believe that cell phones are absolutely safe,when even in your cell phone manual its suggested to keep it half an inch away from your body...Do you really want to trust your life to someone like bedlam? Read your manual,look at the studies and come to your own conclusion.In the end only you are responsible for your life..Its not like you have to give up cell phones..All you have to do is keep it away from your body.You can do this by using a speakerphone.Also you can get an airtube headset which in theory helps reduce emf from going to the head..Also get voice over ip! Ooma is only 3.80 a month and the voice is crystal clear!Vonage is good as well..

The only way to be 100% safe is to not use cell phones at all..But in this day and age I know that's very difficult .Take steps to reduce your exposure to this possible carcinogen..Its better to be safe then sorry don't you think?