Why electrohypersensitivity and related symptoms are caused by non-ionizing man-made electromagnetic fields: An overview and medical assessment

Dominique Belpomme, Philippe Irigaray.  Why electrohypersensitivity and related symptoms are caused by non-ionizing man-made electromagnetic fields: An overview and medical assessment. Environmental Research. Available online 7 May 2022, 113374. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2022.113374.

Highlights
• Electrohypersensitivity is caused by electromagnetic fields.• Electrohypersensitivity is a neurological disorder with inflammation, oxidative stress, blood brain barrier opening and neurotransmitter abnormalities.• Electrohypersensitivity must be defined by the decrease of brain electromagnetic fields tolerance threshold.
Abstract

Much of the controversy over the cause of electrohypersensitivity (EHS) lies in the absence of recognized clinical and biological criteria for a widely accepted diagnosis. However, there are presently sufficient data for EHS to be acknowledged as a distinctly well-defined and objectively characterized neurologic pathological disorder. Because we have shown that 1) EHS is frequently associated with multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) in EHS patients, and 2) that both individualized disorders share a common pathophysiological mechanism for symptom occurrence; it appears that EHS and MCS can be identified as a unique neurologic syndrome, regardless of its causal origin. In this overview we distinguish the etiology of EHS itself from the environmental causes that trigger pathophysiological changes and clinical symptoms after EHS has occurred. Contrary to present scientifically unfounded claims, we indubitably refute the hypothesis of a nocebo effect to explain the genesis of EHS and its presentation. We as well refute the erroneous concept that EHS could be reduced to a vague and unproven “functional impairment”. To the contrary, we show here there are objective pathophysiological changes and health effects induced by electromagnetic field (EMF) exposure in EHS patients and most of all in healthy subjects, meaning that excessive non-thermal anthropogenic EMFs are strongly noxious for health. In this overview and medical assessment we focus on the effects of extremely low frequencies, wireless communications radio frequencies and microwaves EMF. We discuss how to better define and characterize EHS. Taken into consideration the WHO proposed causality criteria, we show that EHS is in fact causally associated with increased exposure to man-made EMF, and in some cases to marketed environmental chemicals. We therefore appeal to all governments and international health institutions, particularly the WHO, to urgently consider the growing EHS-associated pandemic plague, and to acknowledge EHS as a new real EMF causally-related pathology.
Excerpts
In Table 6 the prevalence expressed in percentages of EHS people relative to the overall population is estimated to range from 0.7% to 13.3%, mainly affecting on average 3%–5% of the population in many different worldwide area or countries, meaning that millions of people may in fact be affected by man-made EMF intolerance, and often by EHS. Similar worldwide figures may account for MCS (Genuis, 2010)….
Given the seven billion people worldwide – most using cordless phones and/or mobile phones, Wi-Fi, and other wireless devices – and given the present and future development of 5G (Hardell and Nyberg, 2020; Hardell and Carlberg, 2020; Pall, 2021), it is expected that the prevalence of EMF intolerance and EHS will significantly increase worldwide in the next few years. However, because the figures indicated in Table 6 are estimations based on no objective criteria for identifying EHS (Hallberg and Oberfeld, 2006), we believe these data require confirmation by more objective evaluations. Although the reported EHS prevalence figures are only estimations, it is expected that EMF intolerance and EHS prevalence will continue to grow, in as much as the manufacturers of WC technologies and chemical industries will continue developing their products….

Today’s level of scientific knowledge engenders a great ethical responsibility of scientists and governments and of national and international health bodies to uncover the adverse health effects of the increasing man-made EMF exposures and warn on the emerging and growing worldwide EHS and MCS global plagues. This means that suitable public health measures must urgently be taken to recognize EHS and MCS as new pathologies and decrease EMF-exposures.

We therefore strongly ask WHO to add EHS and MCS in the future versions of the WHO International Classification of Diseases on the basis on their clinical and pathophysiological identification, just as has already been done for other recognized diseases.
Funding

This research was funded by the European Cancer and Environment Research Institute (ECERI) grant number 0001092020.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0013935122007010?via%3Dihub

Related post:
Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity

Joel M. Moskowitz, Ph.D., Director
Center for Family and Community Health
School of Public Health
University of California, Berkeley

Electromagnetic Radiation Safety

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