EHS continued:
1. Definition:
Electromagnetic hypersensitivity is characterised by an awareness and/or adverse symptomatology in response to even extremely weak (orders of magnitude below current safety levels1,2) electromagnetic fields of multiple types (in terms of frequency/intensity and waveforms). Relevant diagnostic coding that may be used by UK medical doctors include “idiopathic/environmental intolerance (IEI)”, 3,4
code Z58.4 (Exposure to radiation) under the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10),5T66 (microwave syndrome)=”other unspecified effects of external causes: radiation sickness.”6
[Note: All life is electrosensitive to some degree and thresholds for conscious perception will vary depending on age, gender and individual physiology.7,8,9,10 ]
2. Common symptoms include:
Headaches, dizziness, sleep disturbance, sensory up-regulation, palpitations, unusual pain in multiple sites, visual disturbance, auditory disturbance (esp tinnitus), membrane sensitivity, muscle twitching, dermatological complaints, hyperactivity /fatigue (depends on adrenal status/ state of EHS), restless leg
syndrome, memory/concentration disturbance and anxiety11,12,13,14,15 (psychiatric symptoms such as anxiety and depression are likely to be secondary to the physiological effects rather than a primary cause16). Interestingly, with good avoidance, symptoms tend to disappear in the reverse order that they accumulated.
3. Characterised by multiple sensory up-regulation: Up-regulation of all senses is commonly noted in persons with EHS, i.e. Photophobia and/or Scotopic
sensitivity syndrome (visual sensitivity), Hyperacusis (hearing sensitivity), Hyperosmia (heightened sense of smell), Hypergeusia (heightened taste sensitivity), Hyperesthesia/Photosensitivity (heightened skin sensitivity) and Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) is associated.17,18,99,109
4. Exposure induced:
EHS is a cumulative, exposure-triggered condition, and exposures are rising rapidly (see Appendix 1). Devices which emit RF and known to cause symptoms in those with EHS include: mobile phones, DECT cordless landlines, Wi-Fi/Bluetooth enabled laptop, desktop computers and laptops, Wi-Fi routers, Smart meters, fluorescent lighting, baby monitors, security systems, RFID systems and wireless gaming consoles. ELF (Extremely Low Frequency) fields ((household electrical) will also cause symptoms in some individuals.
5. Characterised by increasing trigger susceptibility and irreversibility:
If EHS is unmanaged and there is general deterioration, there will be reaction to an increasingly broad range of frequencies at increasingly low intensities, i.e. the number of devices complained of triggering symptoms will increase and symptomatic distances will decrease.
19
Tendency towawards MCS will also
increase and irreversibility will become more likely.
20
6. Highly prevalent:
Estimates for the number of people with EHS vary widely, but several countries report around 4-10%.21,22,23 In the UK this corresponds to approximately 2.5 to 6.3 million24 (which is more than the number of UK wheelchair users). This is likely to be a gross underestimation (see point 7 below) given that figures are based on the number of people who have made the connection between their symptoms and EMF exposure. The number of people who have mild EHS symptoms, but have not linked them yet to exposure would be far higher. Given the ubiquity of exposure now in all environments, it can be very difficult for people to notice the association.
7. Rapidly rising:
Extrapolated figures suggest that 50% of the population may be affected by 2017 (Appendix 3).
8. May affect everyone:
Interestingly, the signs and symptoms associated with RF exposures from e.g. mobile phone base
stations,25,26,27,28 29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39,40 (also see Appendix 4) Wi-Fi,41,42 mobile phones,
43,44,45,46,47,48,49,50,51,52,53,54,55,56,57,58,59,60,61,62,63,64,65,66,67,68,69,140,143 radio/TV broadcasting transmitters,
70,71,72,73,74 smart meters, 75 MRI scanners,
76
,
77,78,79,80,81,82,83,84,85,86 and other RF sources87,88
reveal that the general population (not known to be EHS) experience the same constellation ofsymptoms as are noted in EHS. This is a dose-response relationship. Thus, it is possible that EHS could manifest in all members of the population with enough exposure. (Please note some of the above studies are demonstrating EHS symptoms in children.)
9. Proven physiological condition:
EHS has been demonstrated in a published, peer-reviewed, double blind research study, 89 as an
‘environmentally inducible bona-fide neurological syndrome’, 90 and other provocation testscorroborate this evidence.
73,76,91,92,93,94,95,101
In addition, multiple papers have demonstrated physiological variations in those with EHS25,26,28,31,33,37,92,94,96,97,98,99,100,101,102,103,104,105,106,107,108,109,110,111,112,113
and genetic variations. 99
Furthermore, mechanisms are evolving that may explain the symptomatology
of EHS.
42,44,52,55,56,62,65,69,78,81,87,88,96,100, 114,115,116,117,118,119,120,121,122,123,124,125,126 Therefore, increasingly, professional bodies are recognising this as a physiological condition.
127,128,129,130,131,132,133,134,135
10. Recognised by World Health Organisation (WHO):
The WHO states that 'symptoms are certainly real' and 'in some cases can be disabling'. 136‘Some studies suggest that certain physiological responses of IEI individuals tend to be outside the normal range. In particular, the findings of hyper reactivity in the central nervous system and misbalance
in the autonomic nervous system need to be followed up in clinical investigations and the results for the
individuals taken as input for possible treatment.’ 113
11. Nocebo effect invalid: .....
http://www.electronicsilentspring.com/wp...ussels.pdf
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