Science admit their error

Science magazine, and article author Gretchen Vogel, have admitted that their article claiming that the "only 2" studies to have found DNA damage from RF radiation were under suspicion of fraud. She has now admitted that there is at least one further laboratory that have replicated the work, but also strangely stated that she deliberately ignored research that found evidence of DNA damage that was not actual breakage of DNA!

Scientific American - Fact or Fiction? - Cellphones can cause Brain Cancer: 21.11.08

The relevance for Airwave (TETRA) - by Barrie Trower

In Melinda Wenner's article, she writes, concerning cellphone use:

"If cellphone use does, in fact, triple the odds of getting cancer, these statistics would suggest that over 60 years a man's risk of developing a brain tumour from cellphone use increases from 0.206% to 0.621%, and a woman's from 0.156% to 0.468%." (1)

This suggests an increase of 0.415% and 0.312% respectively, or 4.15 and 3.12 per 1,000 people - or an average of 3.635 for both sexes.  If we have 300,000 Officers and associated groups using TETRA (Airwave), this suggests a potential for a possible 1,090 slow-growing cancers.

However, these figures are based on ‘ordinary daily use' - a figure long argued over -  it can range from 20 minutes to 2 hours per day, depending on whom you ask.  Police Officers can, in fact, use such a microwave transmitter for a 14-hour shift, and it can have surges of power as a message comes through or is activated.  As all electromagnetic waves are, in fact, accumulative - does this seven-fold increase in ‘daily use' mean that the 1,090 cancers can become 7,630 cancers?

Also, the original figures took into account that the number tumours would be less as the dense bone of the skull offers some protection.  Police Officers tend to carry their transmitters on their neck (shoulder), which offers no such protection.

Melinda Wenner quotes Professor Challis - former Chairman of the MTHR programme as saying:

"For people who've used cellphone for more than 10 years, and who use their phone on the same side as the tumour, it appears there's an association".

The Nobel Prize-winning Irish Doctors Association have recently published details of 60+ recent research papers, showing how microwave radiation can trigger cancer promoters/initiators - change EEG patterns and cause other health problems. (2)

I do not accept the statement often given: "for every paper showing harm there is one showing microwaves are safe".  I am still waiting for just one independently financed, peer reviewed study showing no ill-effects from long-term low-level microwaves.

(1)    www.sciam.com/article/cfm?id=fact-or-fiction-cellphones-can-cause-brain-cancer

(2)    www.ideaireland.org/emrresearch.htm - Research Studies done on microwave radiation.  Irish Doctors Environmental Association 25.11.08.

A simple hypothesis based on studies made over thirty years ago (and regarded as mere scientific curiosities at the time) can explain virtually all of the adverse effects of exposure to non-ionising radiation, with pulsed radiation being the most dangerous. Some of the symptoms are especially apparent in individuals suffering from electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS). Symptoms include skin rashes, sensations of heat, pins and needles, dizziness, nausea, visual disturbances, effects on brain function, DNA damage, loss of fertility, risk of miscarriage, sensitivity to allergens and a greater chance of getting cancer.

The original work showed that electromagnetic radiation that was far too weak to generate significant heat could nevertheless remove calcium ions from cell surfaces. A modern interpretation of these results by Dr Andrew Goldsworthy (an Honorary Lecturer at Imperial College London) explains how the loss of these ions can make cell membranes leak, which in turn gives rise to the symptoms.

Leakage of the contents of skin cells causes inflammation. Leakage of ions in the sensory cells scattered over our body surfaces triggers them to send spurious nerve impulses to the brain causing false sensations (paresthesias). Similar leakages in the sensory cells of the inner ear give false impulses leading to tinnitus, dizziness and symptoms of motion sickness. Leakages in the rods and cones of the eye can cause a partial loss of vision. Leakage in neurons can cause brain hyperactivity leading to sleep disturbances, loss of concentration, ADHD and autism. Leakage in the tight junction barriers that protect all of our body surfaces from the ingress of foreign materials increases the risk of developing allergies and multiple chemical sensitivities. Leakage through internal membranes of cells releases digestive enzymes from lysosomes that then damage DNA, causing a loss of fertility, genetic damage to offspring and an increased risk of developing cancer in later life. Unnecessary exposure to even weak electromagnetic fields should therefore be avoided.

See Dr. Andrew Goldsworthy's presentation here .

However, they are seemingly oblivious to the fact that living cells depend on electricity and electrically charged atoms and molecules (ions) to maintain their healthy functioning. They can therefore be damaged electrically by electromagnetic radiation that is far too weak to generate significant heat.  

For example, our cells use the energy from food to pump ions out of mitochondria (the cells’ power stations).  They are then let back in through an ATPase (an enzyme not unlike a molecular water wheel). Each turn of the wheel generates a molecule of ATP, which is the main energy currency of the cell. In effect, an electric current flowing into and out of these tiny structures provides virtually all of our bodily energy. 

Some of this ATP is then used to pump ions out of the cell. When they return via special enzymes (called transporters) in the cell membrane, they can carry with them essential nutrients that the cell needs to absorb. So we use electricity to absorb our food too. 

Another example is in our nerve and brain cells. They use ATP to pump sodium and potassium ions across their external membranes. Nerve impulses are generated when these ions are suddenly let back again to give sharp spikes of current.

Last but not least, the membranes themselves (which are only two molecules thick!) are held together electrically. They consist mostly of negatively charged molecules bound together by positively charged ions (mostly calcium), which act as a kind of cement. 

Unfortunately, weak electromagnetic fields gently tease out some of these calcium ions, which weakens the membranes and makes them more inclined to leak. As a result, our bodies become less efficient at generating energy and our nerve and brain cells are more likely to generate false impulses. 

False impulses generated in sensory cells can give symptoms of electrosensitivity, whereas those generated in the brain can affect mental function and may also lead to stress headaches. Even people who do not regard themselves as electrosensitive, frequently get headaches and other unpleasant symptoms when exposed for long periods to the radiation from Wifi, cordless phones and mobile phones. 

Other reported effects from prolonged exposure to pulsed microwaves include an increase risk of cancer and a loss of fertility. This seems to be associated with observable damage to cellular DNA, probably as a result of the leakage of digestive enzymes from lysosomes (tiny particles in living cells that digest and recycle waste) whose membranes have been damaged by the radiation. 

Pulses carried by microwaves are particularly dangerous. This is because their very short wavelength allows the transmission of pulses with extremely rapid rise and fall times, and it is the rate of change of the fields (rather than their total energy) that does most of the biological damage; it catapults vital calcium ions away from cell membranes, which in turn makes them leak. This leakage can explain the great majority of the observed adverse health effects of prolonged exposure to electromagnetic radiation (for more on this, together with references, please visit http://tinyurl.com/55286a ). 

It is therefore unwise and arguably dangerous to be exposed for long periods to the radiation from Wifi transmitters, cordless phones and mobile phones (especially their base stations, which run  24/7). They should certainly not be deployed in public places until all the risks have been independently evaluated. Any claims that they are harmless because they do not generate significant heat are completely unwarranted. 

Andrew Goldsworthy BSc PhD

Lecturer in Biology (retired)