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This week, we’ve been looking at some rare conditions that deserve a bit more attention. And one of the most interesting emerging issues in the field of public health has to be electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS). Basically, it’s the idea that some people are negatively affected by the presence of strong electric currents.
And as the world around us becomes more industrialized and developed, it’s obvious that it will have negative effects on our health. And this relationship between our health and the modern world is an interesting one that leads to a lot of anxiety for many people. But what about this particular claim that electromagnetic fields cause health problems? Let’s look at the facts.
What Is Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity?
Electromagnetic hypersensitivity is a condition that an increasing number of people are concerned about. The idea is that some people are more sensitive to the electromagnetic fields that things like power lines and even home electronics generate. As a result, exposure to these fields reportedly causes them to experience health problems like fatigue, tinnitus, sleep disturbance, muscle aches, impaired balance and even heart issues. Most cases are mild, but some people seem to experience it severely enough that it impacts their ability to live a normal life.
The condition was unknown before the early 1970’s when the first cases were described. But even today, the number of people who say they suffer from it remains small. The World Health Organization estimates the number at about 1 per million people. But it’s interesting to note that the concentration of people who claim to suffer from the condition is higher in certain countries than others. Scandinavian countries like Sweden seem to have the highest number of cases. And people in Sweden also seem to report skin disorders related to the condition more frequently.
Is It Real?
The majority of health care professionals are extremely skeptical about the reality of electromagnetic hypersensitivity. While most don’t dismiss the idea that the patients they see who complain of the condition are suffering, there’s little clinical evidence that suggests that electromagnetic fields are to blame.
Now, we do know that our brains are susceptible to electricity. After all, electrical stimuli in the brain are the basis of thought. Your body itself actually produces electricity. And you control your nerves by sending electrical impulses from cell to cell.
So on one level, it makes sense to think that strong external electric fields can interfere with the way your body functions. They might be upsetting the delicate balance of electrical fields in your body. And the people who say they suffer from EHS certainly think this can explain why they suffer the range of health effects that they do.
Of course, just because something seems like it could be true doesn’t mean it is. That’s why medical science has to rely on careful testing to determine if something is or isn’t a real disease. That’s why tests to determine what’s going on when it comes to EHS have been going on for some time. And the results don’t seem to support the basic assumption behind EHS.
In numerous controlled, double-blind studies, people who claimed to suffer from EHS reported symptoms whether they were being bombarded with electromagnetic fields or not. That’s not to say that people who suffer from EHS are lying, or that the condition isn’t real.
It just means that electromagnetic fields may not actually be the cause of their suffering. There are a number of other alternatives that might explain what’s going on. It’s possible that their physical symptoms are manifestations of mental illness or anxiety disorders. And these disorders may lead sufferers to become fixated on electromagnetism as the source of their pain. Thus, when they believe they are being subjected to it, they feel more pain.
And it’s possible that the rise in reports in certain areas is more of a cultural thing than a geographic one. Certain countries, like Sweden, may put more of a public emphasis on the condition, which leads to more people becoming aware of it and thus becoming convinced that they have it.
So essentially, it’s not as though people who suffer from the condition have an allergy to electromagnetic waves. It’s really more of a phobia. That doesn’t make the stress they feel when they’re exposed to it any less real. But it does mean that treatment should focus on finding out what psychological issues are at play.
So if you’re lucky enough to not suffer from the condition, don’t worry. Electromagnetic fields aren’t going to hurt you. And if you do suffer from it, let us know what it’s like in the comments below.
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