Wifi and Electromagnetic fields

Wifi and Electromagnetic fields by Andrew Goldsworthy. Oct. 2008

We are constantly being misled by elements of the mobile phone and electronics industries (who have huge vested interests in the infrastructure) into believing that the pulsed microwaves used in cell phones and Wifi are harmless. Their sole justification for this is that the radiation is too weak to generate significant heat when they are absorbed by living tissues.

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)
Imperial College London Andrew Goldsworthy BSc, PhD

Who is Andrew Goldsworthy
Andrew Goldsworthy is an Honorary Lecturer in Biology at Imperial College London. He retired from full time teaching in 2004 but still gives occasional lectures there in specialist subjects such as food irradiation and the (exorbitant) energy cost of modern food production.

He was born just before the Second World War and, after a grammar school education in Wales, obtained a First Class Honours Degree in Botany, followed by a PhD at the University College of Swansea. He then took a lecturing post at Imperial College London where, apart from a short secondment to work in agricultural research and a sabbatical in the USA, he has been ever since.

At Imperial, he acquired a reputation among students for explaining complex subjects in simple terms, for ‘out of the box’ thinking, and for spicing his courses with unusual lectures such as those on space biology and the scientific basis of acupuncture.

His research and teaching, extend from the physiology and biochemistry of photosynthesis and photorespiration through the biological effects of electromagnetically treated water to the electrophysiology of plants. He also designed an experiment for the Anglo-Russian ‘Juno’ space mission and is now a member of the Life Sciences Advisory Group for the European Space Agency.

As well as ‘regular’ scientific papers, mainly on plant electrophysiology, he has written several popular science feature articles for the New Scientist on such diverse subjects as ‘Why Trees are Green’ and ‘The Cell Electric’ (on the evolution of plant and animal action potentials and the origin of the nervous system).

His interest in the biological effects of electromagnetic fields dates back over 30 years but has only recently come to fruition with the publication of a new theory that explains many of their seemingly weird effects in simple physico-chemical terms. It was first published (mainly in relation to plants) in Plant Electrophysiology – Theory and Methods, Ed AG Volkov (Springer 2006). This was followed by an Internet publication in 2007 (which can be viewed on this site) entitled ‘The Biological Effects of Weak Electromagnetic Fields’, which deals with their effects on humans and animals and, in particular, the dangers from mobile phones.

The article also includes a section that draws attention to the remarkable similarity between the symptoms of electrosensitivity and those of hypocalcemia (low blood calcium). This is interpreted as being due to both electromagnetic fields and low blood calcium removing structural calcium from cell membranes to produce similar physiological effects. It is argued that electrosensitive individuals may already have a slightly low level of calcium in their bloodstream so that electromagnetic exposure ‘pushes them over the edge’ and they develop hypocalcemia symptoms. If this is correct, it raises the possibility that conventional treatments for hypocalcemia may remove some if not all of the symptoms of electrosensitivity.

Andrew Goldsworthy’s page at Imperial College

The Biological Effects of Weak Electromagnetic Fields, Andrew Goldsworthy, 2007
Selected papers
Electromagnetic Fields and Health: Executive Report, Andrew Goldsworthy, 2009
The dangers of electrosmog, Andrew Goldsworthy, 2007
The Biological Effects of Weak Electromagnetic Fields, Andrew Goldsworthy, 2007
Goldsworthy A, 2006. ‘Effects of electrical and electromagnetic fields on plants and related topics’. In Plant Electrophysiology – Theory and Methods. Ed. Volkov A G (Springer, Berlin, Hiedelberg, New York).
Goldsworthy A, Whitney H, Morris E, 1999. ‘Biological effects of physically conditioned water’. Water Research. 33, 1618-1626.
Goldsworthy A, 1996. ‘Electrostimulation of cells by weak electric currents’. In Electrical Manipulation of Cells. Eds. Lynch, P., Davey, M.R. (Chapman and Hall, New York).
Goldsworthy A, 1995. ‘Photorespiration’. In Production and Improvement of Crops for Drylands. Ed. Gupta, U.S. (Oxford & IBH Publishing Co., New Delhi).
Mina M G, Goldsworthy A, 1992. ‘Electrical polarization of tobacco cells by Ca2+ ion channels’. J. Exptl. Bot. 43, 449-454.
Goldsworthy A, 1991. ‘The Phycobilins’. In Photoreceptor Evolution and Function, ed. Holmes, M.G. (Acad. Press, London).
Mina M G, Goldsworthy A, 1991. Changes in the electrical polarity of tobacco cells following the application of weak external currents. Planta 186, 104-108.
Goldsworthy A, Mina M G, 1991. Electrical patterns of tobacco cells tobacco cells in media containing indole-3-acetic acid or 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid. Planta 183, 368-373.
Goldsworthy A, 1988. ‘Growth control in plant tissue cultures’. In Advances in Biotechnological Processes, Volume 9. Ed. Mizrahi A (Alan R Liss, New York).
Goldsworthy A, 1987. Why trees are green. New Scientist 116 (1590), 48-52.
Goldsworthy A, 1987. Why did nature select green plants? Nature 328, 207-208.
Goldsworthy A, 1987. ‘Electrical control of growth in plant tissue cultures’. In Plant and Animal Cells: Process Possibilities. Eds. Webb, C. and Mavituna, F. (Ellis Horlwood, Chichester 1987).
Goldsworthy A, 1986. The electric compass of plants. New Scientist 109 (1489), 22-23.
Goldsworthy A, Rathore K S, 1985. Electrical control of shoot regeneration in plant tissue cultures. Bio/Technology 3, 1107-1109.
Rathore K S, Goldsworthy A, 1985. Electrical control of growth in plant tissue cultures. Bio/Technology 3, 253-254.
Goldsworthy A, 1984. The cell electric. New Scientist 102 (1407), 14-15.
Goldsworthy A, 1983. The evolution of plant action potentials. J. Theor. Biol. 103, 645-648.
Goldsworthy A, Fielding J L, Dover M B J, 1982. ‘Flash Imbibition’ a method for the re-invigoration of aged wheat seed. Seed Sci. & Technol. 10, 55-65.
Goldsworthy A, 1978. An instrument for measuring crop density by light absorbance. Ann. Bot. 42, 1315-1325.
Goldsworthy A, Gates R, Ridgley D L, 1977. An electronic coleoptile measuring device. J. Exptl. Bot. 28, 744-750