A recent study published inEnvironmental Research reported an association between exposure to electromagnetic radiation in Mexico City — particularly the extremely low frequency magnetic fields (ELF-MF) produced by power lines and household wiring — and children’s risk for developing central nervous system (CNS) tumors.
In short:
Residential exposure to ELF-MF (measured in bedrooms) above 0.4 μT was significantly associated with an increased risk of developing CNS tumors.
Prolonged use of a digital tablet (both with and without internet connection) also increased CNS tumor risk, particularly in children ages 6 - 10.
More than 5% of children in Mexico City were exposed to ELF-MF levels above 0.3 μT, higher than the global average for exposure.
Why this matters:
Everyday exposure to electromagnetic (EMF) radiation — emitted from power lines and electrical grid infrastructure like substations as well as everyday electronics such laptops, tablets and their charging systems — is steadily increasing in the modern world. While the public has some awareness that homes near high voltage powerlines create EMF exposure, fewer are aware that electronics like tablets, laptops, and phones also create EMF exposures in the body, especially when they are charging.
This study adds to the ever-growing body of science pointing to health risks from EMF exposure. The International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organization classified ELF-EMF magnetic fields as a “possible” human carcinogen in 2001, based largely on evidence linking residential exposure of 0.3 to 0.4 μT to childhood leukemia. More recent studies continue to show the association. Further, Kaiser Permanente studies report that prenatal ELF-EMF exposure was associated with increased miscarriage risk and also ADHD, obesity, and asthma in children. A review found industry-funded studies more often report “no effect.” When this bias is accounted for, strong evidence links EMF magnetic field exposure to adult leukemia, brain, and breast cancer.
What you can do: On an individual level, you can easily reduce your daily exposures:
Relocate beds away from electrical panels
Use tablets and laptops on tables, not on laps
Charge phones and devices outside of the bedroom, not by the bed
Do not use a cell phone while it's charging
Unplug water beds and electric blankets before you get in bed
You can also measure the levels in your home with a basic milligauss meter in order to understand the EMF levels in your home.
Many countries limit ELF-MF exposure in homes and schools due to associations with childhood cancer. The Netherlands, as an example, is buying up homes with elevated levels from powerlines and substations. However, the U.S. has no federal safety limits, as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was defunded from EMF research in the 1990s. From a policy perspective, individuals can contact school boards, planning commissions, and utility regulators to request EMF measurements and advocate for risk mitigation siting policies for new schools, childcare centers, and residential developments.
A cancer-linked pesticide banned in more than 60 countries around the world contaminates an estimated 25% of river and stream miles in the lower 48 U.S. states, including many waterways used for drinking water, according to a new analysis.
Women with unusually enlarged breast tissue may face a higher likelihood of several health problems, including chronic migraine, neck pain and sleep apnea, according to new research. The condition, medically known as macromastia, is often discussed in terms of discomfort or appearance. However, researchers from Wake Forest University School of Medicine say it may be […]
Plus de 400 000 jeunes Européens, six décennies de mesures, quatre indicateurs suivis. Le déclin de la condition physique n'est uniforme ni dans le temps ni selon les capacités : l'endurance s'est stabilisée depuis 2015, quand la souplesse recule de plus en plus vite depuis 2000.
En quelques années, l’ARN messager est passé du statut de technologie expérimentale à celui d’outil capable de répondre à une pandémie. Rapide à adapter et presque « programmable », il pourrait désormais ouvrir la voie à des vaccins conçus sur mesure contre certains cancers.
A federal judge on Tuesday said more than 20 defendants including 3M, DuPont, and Honeywell must face claims by Connecticut firefighters who said their protective gear was contaminated by toxic "forever chemicals" that increased their risk of cancer.
More than 50 years after oil drilling was carried out, Kenya's Kargi community is suing BP, alleging contaminated water contributed to cancers and livestock deaths.
He developed a program that became a model for hospitals around the world, making it easier for poor Black patients to navigate an onerous bureaucratic system.
Opposing teams of attorneys spent hours on Monday battling over a proposed $7.25 billion settlement of the U.S. Roundup cancer litigation that, if approved, would allow Bayer to keep selling its controversial glyphosate weed killers while providing roughly $10,000 to $165,000 for individuals suffering from cancer they blame on Roundup use.
Les radicaux libres ont mauvaise réputation. Ils endommagent l’ADN et sont associés au vieillissement et au cancer. Mais une découverte surprenante vient bousculer cette vision : certaines cellules immunitaires ont besoin de ces molécules pour s’attaquer aux tumeurs, qui ont justement trouvé le...
UCLA scientists engineered ready-made T cells from cord blood stem cells that can hunt solid tumors even when cancer cells hide their main target. T cell receptor therapy, commonly called TCR therapy, is a form of cancer treatment that genetically modifies immune cells known as T cells so they can recognize and attack cancer more [...]
Un médicament cardiaque vieux de 100 ans, dérivé de la digitale, pourrait bouleverser le traitement du cancer. Des chercheurs suisses ont découvert que la digoxine peut dissoudre les amas de cellules cancéreuses en circulation, limitant potentiellement leur propagation dans l'organisme. Cette...
La mort cellulaire programmée joue un rôle essentiel dans le renouvellement et le bon fonctionnement de nos tissus. Mais lorsque ce mécanisme se dérègle, certaines cellules échappent à la mort, se multiplient de façon incontrôlée et peuvent favoriser l’apparition de cancers. Décryptage.
I discuss age-related BPH and prostate cancer screenings, highlighting the unreliability of PSA tests. Having BPH does not increase prostate cancer risk. No advantage is gained from prostate cancer treatment. And there are recent studies linking COVID-19 vaccines to increased cancer risks, particularly prostate cancer.
The myriad horrors of the US healthcare system have spawned generations ofmedical tourism from the wealthiest country on Earth to the periphery: Cuba, Mexico, Costa Rica, Canada, Turkey, and Thailand, to name just a few.
Now, Shanghai is quickly rising as one of the top destinations for cancer patients, as China’s biotech sector has spun an experimental treatment developed in the US into a standalone industry.
New reporting by the Wall Street Journal took a look at this fast-growth industry, centered around chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, or CAR-T for short.
CAR-T is essentially a personalized form of immunotherapy, in which a patient’s own white blood cells are engineered to identify and attack specific proteins found in cancer cells. Though the process was first developed by US biotech giants, their inability — or unwillingness — to lower the cost and increase supply of the treatment has led to shortages throughout the country.
That’s where China comes in. As director of the CAR-T program at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston Sairah Ahmed told the WSJ, this therapy can cost around $150,000 to $230,000 in China — still a life-altering bill, but a sizeable discount compared to an insurmountable $550,000 to $850,000 in the US.
This, Ahmed says, is why she advises some patients to seek out treatment in the People’s Republic.
“China has basically done to CAR-T cell therapy the same thing that it’s done to other industries, which is, they’ve industrialized it,” Ahmed explained.
China’s CAR-T services aren’t just cheaper, either. They’re also faster, and come with a host of complimentary after-care treatments, the WSJ notes. As MD Anderson Cancer Center’s explainer on CAR-T therapy advises, the process of extracting and bio-engineering a patient’s cells to fight cancer can take over three weeks in the US. Compare that to China, where the WSJ reports labs near Shanghai can “crank out” the therapy in just a matter of days.
An important caveat here is that CAR-T cell therapy isn’t a catch-all for every type of cancer, and it’s typically only administered after other treatments have failed. It’s not exactly a walk in the park, either, requiring months of recovery and check-ups from a range of physical, neurological, and psychological health specialists. Still, if you had to go through with it, your first step should clearly be pricing out some flights to China.
A new study presents alarming findings linking mRNA COVID-19 vaccines to aggressive heart tumors, as plasmid DNA fragments from the vaccine were found in a 35-year-old patient’s cardiac tumor developed shortly after vaccination. This evidence prompts calls for the immediate removal of mRNA technology from global markets, challenging prior dismissals of "turbo cancer."
Login
