How The Technological Revolution Affects Your Health

I wrote a while ago about light pollution and how it can affect heath. It seems that’s not the only thing connected with electricity that can cause us problems.

Most modern appliances generate heat and electromagnetic waves and more and more people are noticing that they are sensitive to those waves of electromagnetic radiation.

It’s the air around us getting polluted by these waves that can cause electromagnetic hypersensitivity. Many doctors initially didn’t accept that this invisible, non-particulate pollution could cause issues with human heath but more medical professionals are now coming to realise that the symptoms for those that suffer them are very real. The World Health Organisation describes the symptoms on it’s website but doesn’t seem to actually commit itself to saying the condition exists.

The W.H.O states:

EHS is characterized by a variety of non-specific symptoms that differ from individual to individual. The symptoms are certainly real and can vary widely in their severity. Whatever its cause, EHS can be a disabling problem for the affected individual. EHS has no clear diagnostic criteria and there is no scientific basis to link EHS symptoms to EMF exposure. Further, EHS is not a medical diagnosis, nor is it clear that it represents a single medical problem.

Evolution is essentially a slow process in humans, we are genetically programmed to change slowly, over generations in response to our environment. This worked fine for tens of thousands of years, but then along came the Industrial Revolution. factories sprung up left and right and workers migrated from the country to man them. Particulate matter from soot and domestic as well as industrial chimneys felled the air, something humans had never had to deal with before. This gave rise to a whole new batch of illnesses not encountered before. As medical science advanced the causes of this new wave of disease became apparent and laws were enacted to protect the workforce, and individuals with legislation such as Clean Air Acts, the introduction of smokeless zones and the enforcement of protective clothing for hazardous industries. Legislation continues to evolve as new threats become apparent, all of it aimed at protecting us. 

Now the  Technological Revolution is upon us. Think back just a decade and see the changes that have taken place with the technology we now take for granted. We have more technology in the smartphone in our pocket than it took to put an Apollo mission on the moon! Seriously, how can that be possible?

Many of the symptoms of EHS are remarkably similar to other conditions ranging from food sensitivities to chemical exposure. Like both of those the symptoms of EHS vary from person to person. The symptoms include but is not limited to:

• Warmth or tingling like sunburn
• A stinging or pricking sensation in the face or body
• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Poor memory
• Reduced concentration and clarity of thought
• Dry sinuses, throat or eyes
• Nausea
• Aches and pains in the muscles, joints or teeth
• Palpitations
• Sleep disturbance.

With technology advancing at such speed and more people using that technology the incidence of EHS is likely to start affecting more and more people. What other problems it could cause isn’t known because it hasn’t been around long enough for long term data compilation. Let’s hope that EHS is as bad as it gets.

Take care

Liz