Limiting exposure to radiofrequency radiation: the principles and possible criteria for health protection

2022 · Unclear · Insufficient evidence

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UnclearInsufficient evidencePaper 611

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2022

Study typereview

Reported directionUnclear

Evidence ratingInsufficient

Abstract

Limiting exposure to radiofrequency radiation: the principles and possible criteria for health protection Hinrikus H, Koppel T, Lass J, Roosipuu P, Bachmann M. Limiting exposure to radiofrequency radiation: the principles and possible criteria for health protection. International Journal of Radiation Biology. 2022. doi:10.1080/09553002.2023.2159567. Abstract Purpose. The current paper is aimed to discuss the principles and criteria for health protection to radiofrequency electromagnetic field (RF EMF) considering both thermal and non-thermal mechanisms to evaluate the reasonable level for the limits relevant to control the level of RF EMF for the general public in the living environment. The study combines the conclusions of analyses published in recent reviews on RF EMF effects and the data from RF EMF measurements in different countries to select the possible criteria and to derive proposals for the health protection limits on the level of RF EMF following the ALARA principle - as low as reasonably achievable. Conclusions. Consideration of not only energetic but also coherent qualities of RF EMF leads to two different models for determining the impact of non-ionizing radiation on human health. The thermal model, based on absorption of electromagnetic energy, has a threshold limiting the heating of tissues. The non-thermal model, based on the ability of coherent electric fields to introduce biological effects at constant temperature, has no threshold. Therefore, the impact of RF EMF on human health cannot be excluded but can be minimized by limiting the level of the radiation. The limits can be selected based on indirect criteria. The minimal level of RF EMF that has caused a biological effect is about 2 V/m. The level of long-term broadcast radiation is 6 V/m and the people can be assumed to be adapted to that level without observable health problems. The level of RF EMF measured during last years does not exceed 5 V/m and the level is decreasing with newer generations of telecommunication technology. Limiting the level of RF EMF to the peak value of 6 V/m hopefully reduces the health risk to a minimal level people are adapted to and does not restrict the further development of telecommunication technology. Conclusions The consideration of not only energetic but also coherent qualities of RF EMF leads to two different models in investigation of RF EMF biological effects and determining the impact of the non-ionizing radiation on human health. The thermal model based on absorption of electromagnetic energy has a threshold limiting the heating of tissues. The non-thermal model based on the ability of coherent electric fields to introduce biological effects at the constant temperature has no threshold. The impact of RF EMF on human health cannot be excluded but can be reduced, limiting the level of the radiation. The limit, due to the missing threshold, can be selected based on indirect criteria. The minimal levels of RF EMF that have caused a biological effect are 1.4 - 2.45 V/m. The level of long-term broadcast radiation is 6 V/m; people can be assumed to be adapted to that level. The results of measurements over the last decade indicated the level of RF EMF lower than 5 V/m. The majority of measurements have indicated much lower levels. All these values are of the same order of magnitude. Limiting the level of EF EMF to the peak value of 6 V/m hopefully reduces the health risk to a minimal level determined by long existing broadcast radiation people are adapted to without restricting the further development of telecommunication technology. The technology of telecommunication systems is in permanent progress. The newer generations of technology employ lower levels of radiation, shorter time intervals and less energy to provide high quality and speed for transmission of information. Switching off older generations (2G, 3G), accompanying the development of technology today, significantly reduces the level of RF EMF and therefore also reduces the possible health risk. The current level of knowledge allows us to formulate the suggestions only for the threshold and frequency dependence in the models for RF EMF impact. The dynamic relationships between the intensity of the effect and the level of RF EMF or time spent in the radiation are still unknown. The temporal dynamics is most complicated to be assessed because people and animals are living permanently in RF EMF. Further investigations are highly needed for long-term RF EMF effects and in the frequency range higher than 6000 MHz. tandfonline.com

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AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typereview

Effect directionunclear

Populationgeneral public

Sample sizeNot supplied

ExposureRF · long-term (living permanently in RF EMF; long-term broadcast radiation discussed)

Evidence strengthInsufficientConfidence: 74% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

This paper discusses principles and possible criteria for health protection limits for RF EMF, considering both thermal (threshold) and non-thermal (no threshold) models. It states that minimal RF EMF levels reported to have caused biological effects are about 1.4–2.45 V/m, that long-term broadcast radiation is about 6 V/m, and that recent measurements in different countries over the last decade indicate levels generally below 5 V/m and decreasing with newer telecommunication generations. The authors propose limiting RF EMF to a peak value of 6 V/m (ALARA-based) to minimize potential health risk while not restricting technology development.

Outcomes measured

biological effects (thermal and non-thermal mechanisms)
health risk / health protection limits (exposure limit criteria)

Limitations

Narrative synthesis; methods for selecting/combining evidence are not described in the abstract
Uses indirect criteria for limit selection due to asserted missing threshold in non-thermal model
Dynamic dose–response relationships with intensity/time are described as unknown
Calls for further investigations, especially for long-term effects and frequencies >6000 MHz

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "review",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": "living environment / telecommunication and broadcast sources",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "long-term (living permanently in RF EMF; long-term broadcast radiation discussed)"
  },
  "population": "general public",
  "sample_size": null,
  "outcomes": [
    "biological effects (thermal and non-thermal mechanisms)",
    "health risk / health protection limits (exposure limit criteria)"
  ],
  "main_findings": "This paper discusses principles and possible criteria for health protection limits for RF EMF, considering both thermal (threshold) and non-thermal (no threshold) models. It states that minimal RF EMF levels reported to have caused biological effects are about 1.4–2.45 V/m, that long-term broadcast radiation is about 6 V/m, and that recent measurements in different countries over the last decade indicate levels generally below 5 V/m and decreasing with newer telecommunication generations. The authors propose limiting RF EMF to a peak value of 6 V/m (ALARA-based) to minimize potential health risk while not restricting technology development.",
  "effect_direction": "unclear",
  "limitations": [
    "Narrative synthesis; methods for selecting/combining evidence are not described in the abstract",
    "Uses indirect criteria for limit selection due to asserted missing threshold in non-thermal model",
    "Dynamic dose–response relationships with intensity/time are described as unknown",
    "Calls for further investigations, especially for long-term effects and frequencies >6000 MHz"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "insufficient",
  "confidence": 0.74,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "radiofrequency",
    "RF EMF",
    "exposure limits",
    "health protection",
    "thermal effects",
    "non-thermal effects",
    "ALARA",
    "electric field strength",
    "V/m",
    "broadcast radiation",
    "telecommunication technology",
    "measurements"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "who-icnirp",
      "weight": 0.55,
      "reason": "Focuses on principles/criteria for public RF EMF health protection limits, relevant to guideline-setting discussions."
    },
    {
      "slug": "5g-policy",
      "weight": 0.35,
      "reason": "Discusses newer generations of telecommunication technology and calls for research above 6000 MHz, relevant to policy around newer networks."
    }
  ]
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1080/09553002.2023.2159567
PubMed: Not supplied

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