Airplane mode at night, “anti-wave” patch, even moving to white areas, these territories without telephone networks… Since the beginning of the 2000s and the democratization of cell phones and Wi-Fi, a generalized fear seems to have arisen. captured by the French; that of electromagnetic waves. They are responsible for headaches, brain disorders and even cancer for some. But what exactly is it? Europe 1 takes stock.
Where do electromagnetic waves come from?
You should know that electromagnetic waves are everywhere. They come from electromagnetic fields, mostly present naturally in the environment, such as the earth’s magnetic field, or the fields created by lightning. Ultraviolet radiation and visible light from the sun are, for example, also part of electromagnetic waves of natural origin.
Waves carry energy and can serve as a medium for data transmission, which is why they are used in the field of radio communications. The latter are categorized by their frequency, that is to say the number of oscillations of the electromagnetic field in one second, calculated in Hertz. Those of television, radio, mobile phone or Wi-Fi transmitters range from approximately 10 kHz to 300 GHz.
These are called “non-ionizing”, and produce low energy, lower than visible light, and therefore do not damage DNA, unlike so-called “ionizing” waves, used in radiology or in the nuclear which can lead to cancer.
Are they dangerous for health?
Despite thousands of scientific studies, there is to date no proof of the harmfulness of electromagnetic waves on health, as recalled the National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Safety (ANSES). However, there are some publications on a possible increase in the risk of brain tumors in the long term for intensive users of mobile phones; reason why the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) with the WHO, have classified it as “possible carcinogen”. However, these studies do not provide sufficient results to cause concern.
To explain these disagreements, tech specialist and science popularizer on YouTube Léo Duff points to the scientific method, necessary for the credibility of the facts put forward. “The problem in science is that it is very difficult to prove that something does not exist. For example, to prove that there are no white crows, I would have to be certain that I have traveled the planet whole and you could still tell me that I looked wrong,” he summarizes in a video on the subject published this week. The absence of proof is not proof of absence, the gray area created by studies around electromagnetic waves continues to fuel fears.
In 2011, the WHO classified electromagnetic waves from smartphones in category 2B, i.e. “possibly carcinogenic”.
The invisible danger of our phones.https://t.co/Q0vkXRifohpic.twitter.com/3assJja3OV
— Leo Duff (@LeoDuffOff) November 19, 2023
Monitoring the thermal effect of waves
In the field of radio frequencies, the only effect of electromagnetic waves observed today remains thermal: high levels can cause heating of biological tissues, i.e. the skin and internal tissues. But here again, with the precautions taken by health authorities, the heat produced by the waves from our phones and Wi-Fi transmitters presents no risk.
The “anti-wave” products touted by wellness companies and influencers therefore prove useless. By testing 13 different patches, ANSES concluded in 2013 that these devices did not present “no significant protection effectiveness for all mobile phones and frequency bands tested”.