Measurement of Low-level radiofrequency electromagnetic fields in the human environment
In recent years there has been an increase in development of electromagnetic (EM) technology in the telecommunication industry, resulting in an increase in human non-ionizing exposure. This fact has initiated a number of scientific studies on possible health effects of EM fields on human organism. T...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Sciendo
2018-08-01
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| Series: | Acta Medica Martiniana |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.2478/acm-2018-0010 |
| _version_ | 1818333589372141568 |
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| author | Misek J Laukova T Kohan M Veternik M Jakusova V Jakus J |
| author_facet | Misek J Laukova T Kohan M Veternik M Jakusova V Jakus J |
| author_sort | Misek J |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In recent years there has been an increase in development of electromagnetic (EM) technology in the telecommunication industry, resulting in an increase in human non-ionizing exposure. This fact has initiated a number of scientific studies on possible health effects of EM fields on human organism. Totally four representative microenvironments were investigated for RF EM fields distribution, namely: city center, residential area, rural area, and extra-village area. Each microenvironment was measured 20 times in accordance with the International Commission for Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) guidelines. The extra-village measurements were taken as the base values that reflect the E-field intensities with the lowest amplitudes. The statistical analysis revealed notable statistical significance (p < 0.001) in almost all measured frequency bands except the Wi-Fi where the p-values were less than 0.05 for the city center and residential area but not significant for rural area. The highest total E-field intensity was measured in the residential area (approximately 1.85 V/m). All measured values were below the legal limits of the Slovak Republic and ICNIRP safety guidelines. However, the ICNIRP safety limits were written in 1998 considering only the thermal effects of RF radiation. They were updated in 2009 without any changes in the limits and still recommend 27.5 – 61 V/m (2 – 10 W/m2) for the RF frequency band of 400–2,000 MHz. The BioInitiative Report of 2012 established the scientific benchmark for possible health risks as 30–60 μW/m2 (approximately 0.1 – 0.15 V/m). Thus, all measured values were above the scientifically derived limits. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T13:54:02Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-57f04a2f325448b7b8e8c2342c02b95b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1335-8421 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T13:54:02Z |
| publishDate | 2018-08-01 |
| publisher | Sciendo |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Acta Medica Martiniana |
| spelling | doaj.art-57f04a2f325448b7b8e8c2342c02b95b2022-12-21T23:42:57ZengSciendoActa Medica Martiniana1335-84212018-08-01182273310.2478/acm-2018-0010acm-2018-0010Measurement of Low-level radiofrequency electromagnetic fields in the human environmentMisek J0Laukova T1Kohan M2Veternik M3Jakusova V4Jakus J5Department of Medical Biophysics, Jessenius Faculty of Medicine in Martin, Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovak RepublicDepartment of Medical Biophysics, Jessenius Faculty of Medicine in Martin, Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovak RepublicDepartment of Medical Biophysics, Jessenius Faculty of Medicine in Martin, Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovak RepublicDepartment of Medical Biophysics, Jessenius Faculty of Medicine in Martin, Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovak RepublicDepartment of Public Health, Jessenius Faculty of Medicine in Martin, Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovak RepublicDepartment of Medical Biophysics, Jessenius Faculty of Medicine in Martin, Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovak RepublicIn recent years there has been an increase in development of electromagnetic (EM) technology in the telecommunication industry, resulting in an increase in human non-ionizing exposure. This fact has initiated a number of scientific studies on possible health effects of EM fields on human organism. Totally four representative microenvironments were investigated for RF EM fields distribution, namely: city center, residential area, rural area, and extra-village area. Each microenvironment was measured 20 times in accordance with the International Commission for Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) guidelines. The extra-village measurements were taken as the base values that reflect the E-field intensities with the lowest amplitudes. The statistical analysis revealed notable statistical significance (p < 0.001) in almost all measured frequency bands except the Wi-Fi where the p-values were less than 0.05 for the city center and residential area but not significant for rural area. The highest total E-field intensity was measured in the residential area (approximately 1.85 V/m). All measured values were below the legal limits of the Slovak Republic and ICNIRP safety guidelines. However, the ICNIRP safety limits were written in 1998 considering only the thermal effects of RF radiation. They were updated in 2009 without any changes in the limits and still recommend 27.5 – 61 V/m (2 – 10 W/m2) for the RF frequency band of 400–2,000 MHz. The BioInitiative Report of 2012 established the scientific benchmark for possible health risks as 30–60 μW/m2 (approximately 0.1 – 0.15 V/m). Thus, all measured values were above the scientifically derived limits.https://doi.org/10.2478/acm-2018-0010base transceiver stationenvironment exposuremobile communicationcell phone |
| spellingShingle | Misek J Laukova T Kohan M Veternik M Jakusova V Jakus J Measurement of Low-level radiofrequency electromagnetic fields in the human environment Acta Medica Martiniana base transceiver station environment exposure mobile communication cell phone |
| title | Measurement of Low-level radiofrequency electromagnetic fields in the human environment |
| title_full | Measurement of Low-level radiofrequency electromagnetic fields in the human environment |
| title_fullStr | Measurement of Low-level radiofrequency electromagnetic fields in the human environment |
| title_full_unstemmed | Measurement of Low-level radiofrequency electromagnetic fields in the human environment |
| title_short | Measurement of Low-level radiofrequency electromagnetic fields in the human environment |
| title_sort | measurement of low level radiofrequency electromagnetic fields in the human environment |
| topic | base transceiver station environment exposure mobile communication cell phone |
| url | https://doi.org/10.2478/acm-2018-0010 |
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