Exposure
to microwave EMFs, like cellphones, causes massive mitochondrial
dysfunction due to damage done by free radicals from peroxynitrite that
also cause single and double stranded breaks in your DNA
Excessive
free radicals triggered by low-frequency microwave exposure from
cellphones and Wi-Fi networks have been linked to chronic diseases such
as cardiac arrhythmias, anxiety, depression, autism, Alzheimer’s and
infertility
Excessive
calcium signaling produced by EMF exposures also has important roles in
producing pathophysiological effects of EMFs including each of the
effects listed above
Strategies
that may help reduce the harmful effects of EMFs include optimizing
your magnesium level, certain Nrf2-boosting foods, exercise, calorie
restriction and strategies that boost nitric oxide signaling (which
acts, in turn, by raising Nrf2)
By Dr. Mercola
I’ve often noted that electromagnetic fields
(EMFs) are a pernicious, hidden health risk. But exactly how does this
kind of microwave radiation damage your health? Martin Pall, Ph.D., has
identified and published research describing the likely molecular
mechanisms of how EMFs from cellphones and wireless technologies damage plants, animals and humans.1,2 ,3,4
Pall has a bachelor’s in physics from Johns Hopkins and a Ph.D. in
biochemistry and genetics from Caltech, and is uniquely qualified for
this type of research. For the past 18 years, he’s been scouring the
medical literature, integrating and drawing parallels between work done
by others to answer this pressing question. Pall explains:
“There is a huge amount of information out here that nobody has
the time to integrate, digest and make connections [between]. That’s
what I’ve been doing … I was interested in EMFs before I could
understand how they worked. Then I stumbled onto two papers that told
me, ‘Well, this looks like the way they work,’ and then I dug out more
and more papers …
What the [initial two] studies showed was that you could block or
greatly lower the effects [of EMF] by using calcium channel blockers …
That was the key observation …
Now [I have found] 26 [papers] … They all show that EMFs work by
activating what are called voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs). These
are channels in the outer membrane of the cell, the plasma membrane
that surrounds all our cells. When they’re activated, they open up and
allow calcium to flow into the cell. It’s the excess calcium in the cell
which is responsible for most if not all of the [biological effects].”
When you expose cells to EMFs, there’s increased intercellular
calcium. You also get increases in calcium signaling, which is important
as well, in terms of explaining the damage EMFs cause. For the past 25
years, the industry has claimed that non-ionizing radiation is harmless
and that the only radiation worth worrying about is ionizing radiation.
Pall’s research unequivocally proves that this assumption is false.
“It’s been very clear, going back all the way to 1971 and even
before that, that this wasn’t true. But we didn’t know what the
mechanism was. Now, we do. I think it’s very important, because the
industry’s been trying to hoodwink everybody for decades. Now we know
how it works. One of the other things that’s very important about this
is that there is a wide variety of different health impacts that have
been reported. Now we can explain how [these problems arise].”
How EMFs Damage Your Health
When your VGCCs are exposed to EMFs,
they open up, allowing abnormally large volumes of calcium ions into
the cells — about 1 million ions per second per channel. Each VGCC has a
voltage sensor, a structure that detects electrical changes across the
plasma membrane and opens the channel. EMFs work through the voltage
sensor to activate the channel and radically increase intracellular
levels into dangerous ranges.
“Because of the structure of the voltage sensor and its location in
the plasma membrane, one can predict from basic physics that it’s
extraordinarily sensitive to the electrical forces from EMFs,” Pall
notes. On average, these forces are approximately 7.2 million times
stronger on the voltage sensor than they are on singly charged
electrical groups in the aqueous (watery) part of the cell. What this
means is that current safety standards are off by a factor of about 7
million.
That’s how these very weak EMFs, which industry claims can’t possibly
cause you any harm, are actually taking you out prematurely. They work
by activating VGCCs. This turns out to be absolutely critical, because
when there’s excess calcium in the cell, a number of things happen. Not
only do you get excess calcium signaling, you also get increased nitric
oxide (NO). While NO has many beneficial health effects, massively
excessive NO reacts with superoxide.
Superoxide levels also rise in response to increased intercellular
calcium. Together, they form peroxynitrite, which is an extremely potent
oxidant stressor. While not a free radical, peroxynitrites break down
to form reactive free radicals, both reactive nitrogen species and
reactive oxygen species (ROS) including hydroxyl free radicals.
“You get both, because you get hydroxyl radicals and carbonate
radicals and NO2 radicals,” Pall explains. All three do damage.
According to Pall, most of the damage is likely done by excessive free
radicals, but some damage is caused directly by the peroxynitrites. The
end result is rather massive harm, as excessive oxidative stress
and nitrosative stress are involved in nearly all chronic disease. Much
of the pathophysiology also has to do with the excessive calcium
signaling, independently of peroxynitrite.
NO Signaling Pathway Versus Peroxynitrite Pathway
It’s important to realize that not all oxidative stress is harmful.
There’s a certain baseline of free radicals that’s biologically useful
and necessary. NO, for example, is a free radical, yet it has many very
beneficial effects. The problem is excessive oxidative stress.
Interestingly, Pall notes that the NO signaling pathway and the
peroxynitrite pathways inhibit each other, which I never previously
knew. This provides support for the new nitric oxide dump exercise to decrease damage from EMFs.
Why You Cannot Depend on Industry Claims
Many are unaware that the telecommunications industry is perhaps more
well-funded than the pharmaceutical industry, and just as powerful
politically. Their lobbyists are very effective in disseminating and
protecting the industry’s version of the truth. Needless to say, the
industry will also actively discredit research that demonstrates harm
and/or defund research projects that start to reveal problems.
In fact, the current head of the Federal Communications Commission
was formerly the chief lobbyist for the telecommunications industry —
one of the worst cases of the disgusting revolving door between industry
and government and the fox guarding the hen house that I have seen in
sometime.
“I know how they’ve attacked various people,” Pall says.
“In the U.S. … the funding for the EMF research [by the Environmental
Protection Agency] was cut off starting in 1986 … The U.S. Office of
Naval Research had been funding a fair amount of research in this area
[in the ‘70s]. They [also] … stopped funding new grants in 1986 … And
then the National Institutes of Health (NIH) a few years later followed
the same path …
[I]t’s actually shocking to say there are only two countries in
the world that are doing a lot of research in this, well beyond their
normal scope … Turkey and Iran … they’re doing quite a bit of good
research in both of those countries on EMFs … What I’ve been doing is
I’ve been doing it on my own. I’ve been contributing my time to it and
my efforts and, at least to a small extent, some money to it. But it
doesn’t cost that much, so I can do it.
So, we have the fact that the money was cut off. One strongly
suspects the industry had a role on that. The industry, with the 1996
Telecommunications Act, gave the regulation to the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC), which has done nothing in terms of
protecting the public.
In addition, they prevented the public from protecting their
health with regard to their exposures from the cellphone towers. We
cannot sue to prevent cellphone towers from being put near our workplace
or homes. Basically, what the Congress did was to say our health makes
no difference … So, we’re in extremely deep trouble,” Pall says.
Neuropsychiatric Effects of EMF Exposure
And this brings us to the crux of the problem, namely the physical
locations where VGCCs are the densest, and the subsequent diseases you
can expect from chronic excessive exposure to EMFs. The highest density
of VGCCs are found in your nervous system and, indeed, studies dating
back to the 1950s and ‘60s show the nervous system is the organ that is
most sensitive to EMFs.
Some of these studies show massive changes in the structure of
neurons, including cell death and synaptic dysfunction. When the VGCCs
are activated in the brain they release neurotransmitters and
neuroendocrine hormones. Hence, consequences of chronic EMF exposure to
the brain include the following, which Pall details in a 2016 paper:5
In animals exposed to EMFs, there are massive, cumulative effects in
the brain. Genetic polymorphism studies also show that elevated VGCC
activity in certain parts of the brain produces a variety of
neuropsychiatric effects.
“I reviewed a [large number] of studies on various kinds of EMF
exposures, each of them showing neuropsychiatric effects. What you find
is that these effects have been repeated many times in these
epidemiological studies. It’s the same thing that everybody’s
complaining about, ‘I’m tired all the time,’ ‘I can’t sleep,’ ‘I can’t
concentrate,’ ‘I’m depressed,’ ‘I’m anxious all the time,’ ‘My memory
doesn’t work well anymore.’ All the things everybody’s complaining
about.
We know all those things are caused by EMF exposures. There’s no
doubt about that. Because we know their effects on the brain, we know
that the VGCCs’ excessive activity can produce various neuropsychiatric
problems.
Here we’ve got all of these epidemiological data that confirms
this is happening in humans who live near cellphone towers, who were
exposed to Wi-Fi, who were exposed to broadcasting radiation, who use
cellphones, tablets and so on. That’s very important. I think we should
care about this.”
Cardiac Effects
Your heart is also very sensitive to EMFs, particularly the pacemaker
cells of your heart, as they have the highest density of VGCCs. As a
consequence of this, we find that EMFs tend to trigger the following
conditions. If you have any of these conditions (or any of the ones
discussed above and below), you need to know that EMF exposure is a
major contributing factor and take immediate and aggressive steps to
remediate your exposure.
Cardiac arrhythmias (associated with sudden cardiac death)
Atrial fibrillation / atrial flutter
Premature atrial contractions (PACs) and premature ventricular contractions (PVCs), also known as heart palpitations
Tachycardia (fast heartbeat) and brachycardia (slow heartbeat)
Reproductive Effects
A third area with densely populated VGCCs is the reproductive system,
particularly the male testes. A consequence here is impaired or reduced
fertility. There is evidence showing EMFs can cause both male and
female infertility, but male infertility has been more studied. Pall
describes a classic reproduction experiment published 19 years ago by
Ioannis Magras and Thomas Xenosin Greece:
“They took young pairs of mice, one male and female. They put
them in a little cage on the ground outside in an antenna park … The
[radiation] levels at the ground were well within our current safety
guidelines … They put them in two different locations, one with a higher
level of exposure and one with a lower level of exposure.
What they found was that at the higher-level exposure, each pair
produced one litter that was approximately normal sized, then a second
litter that was clearly down in numbers and then complete infertility —
not a single mouse born …
At lower level exposure, it was basically the same story, except
it took twice as long. They produced four litters with decreasing
numbers, and then complete infertility. We have now, in humans in many
countries around the world, decreased male sperm count — down by over 50
percent in Western countries, and about half of that amount in other
countries around the world.6,7
The senior author in that paper is saying, ‘If this keeps going,
we’re going to become extinct,’ just from the drop in male sperm count.
We know that that occurs in humans — in people who carry their
cellphones in their front pockets, men who use their laptops with the
Wi-Fi on sitting on their lap. We know that occurs. But of course,
industry denies everything.”
Indeed, studies have linked low-level electromagnetic radiation (EMR)
exposure from cellphones to an 8 percent reduction in sperm motility
and a 9 percent reduction in sperm viability.8,9
Wi-Fi equipped laptop computers have also been linked to decreased
sperm motility and an increase in sperm DNA fragmentation after just
four hours of use.10
EMFs and Cancer
Studies on cancer have also been blocked by the industry in a number
of ways, including preventing researchers from obtaining real-world data
on cellphone usage. Obviously, people who use their cellphones the most
are at greatest risk. While not at the top of the list of concerns
associated with EMF exposure, cancer is yet another potential
consequence of mitochondrial damage.
Women who carry their cellphones in their bra,
for example, risk cancer in the upper inner quadrant of the breast,
which is very atypical and not the usual upper outer quadrant. Brain cancer
is another possibility from extended cellphone use if you keep the
phone to your ear. That said, emphasizing the cancer risk is likely
counterproductive, as most people use cellphones and those who develop
brain cancer are few and far in between. The problem is brain cancer has
a latency period of a decade or more. Arrhythmias, autism, anxiety and
Alzheimer’s, on the other hand, are extremely prevalent these days, and
we now have a mechanism that explains how EMF contributes to all of
them.
So, even though two U.S. senators likely got brain cancer from cell
phones (Ted Kennedy and John McCain), it’s important to understand that
cellphone dangers are not just about brain cancer. It’s all these other
problems as well, including infertility. “In my judgment, cancer is down
around No.4 or No. 5 on the list of my concerns. It’s not that cancer
is not important. It’s very important. We’re just looking right now at
the early stages because of long latencies,” Pall says.
What Is More Dangerous, Cellphones or X-Rays?
If you are like most, the answer is obvious: X-rays. That is because
you have been convinced by the deceptive lies of the telecommunications
industry that have lobbied the government to reinforce this delusional
myth. The reality is that there is compelling evidence showing
cellphones are more dangerous than X-rays — by several orders of
magnitude.
Some of the best evidence comes from a German study (headed by
professor Franz Adlkofer), in which the effects of ionizing radiation
equivalent to 1,600 chest X-rays were compared to 24 hours on a
cellphone. Surprisingly, they found both produced roughly equivalent
amounts of DNA breaks in in-vitro assays. According to Pall, this
actually vastly underestimates the effects of cellphones, because they
used a continuous wave EMF, not pulsed.
There’s extensive evidence showing pulsed EMFs are far more damaging
than continuous wave EMFs. That’s important for a number of reasons,
including the fact that all wireless communication devices communicate
by pulsations. In another paper, the group showed that when you use
pulsations designed to be similar to the pulsation from a real
cellphone, damage occurred at far lower intensities.
“This raises the question, ‘How can this possibly happen?’ I
think the answer comes from the kind of diagram I’ve published, which is
how EMFs produce free radicals,” Pall says. “Both ionizing
radiation and the microwave frequency EMFs produce DNA damage through
free radicals. They’re similar in that way. Where you get the free
radicals is through the peroxynitriate pathway.
It turns out that when you go from EMFs to the free radicals on
that pathway, there are three steps that involve high levels of
amplification. One of them is when you open up the channels, you get
about a million calcium ions flowing in per second. The second is that
you get increases in NO and superoxide.
Those, in effect, will be the calcium acting catalytically,
because once it’s in the cell, as long as it’s elevated, you keep
getting more and more [NO and superoxide]. And then those two react with
each other to form peroxynitrite. The reaction rates are the product of
the two concentrations. So you have three levels of amplification. If
you have three levels of amplification, you get a hell of a response to a
very small stressor.”
Ionizing Radiation and DNA Breaks
The industry says there’s not enough energy in microwave radiation to
cause direct damage to covalent bonds in DNA. This is true. There
isn’t. It’s the biological amplification resulting in excessive
oxidative stress that causes the damage. Interestingly, even most of the
damage caused by ionizing radiation is actually due to secondary free
radical formation that breaks DNA. It’s not directly from the energy
within the radiation. Pall explains:
“That was published by Arthur Compton. He got the Nobel Prize for
it in 1927. The way in which ionizing radiation works, it basically
gets molecules and atoms and knocks electrons out, and then you get
pairs of free radicals generated. That’s called Compton scattering.
There is amplification from ionizing radiation, but it’s only at
one level. One energetic photon can produce a chain of free radicals.
You’ve got three levels of amplification with the microwave frequency
EMFs. The amount of damage you get based on those studies is truly
extraordinary. Of course, Adlkofer and [Pilger] Rudinger were severely
attacked by the industry.”
Practical Strategies to Limit Your Exposure
Naturally, to reduce your risk of harm, you need to reduce your exposure to EMFs.
Cellphone towers should be a major concern if you work or go to school
within 300 meters (about 1,000 feet) of one. Even just driving around
can expose you to substantial cellphone tower radiation.
Your cellphone is a major source of exposure, as are cordless phones,
Wi-Fi routers, Bluetooth headsets and other Bluetooth-equipped items,
wireless mice, keyboards, smart thermostats, baby monitors, smart meters and the microwave in your kitchen. Ideally, address each source and determine how you can best limit their use.
A simple remedy is to turn off your Wi-Fi each night. That’s just
unnecessary exposure. Not carrying your cellphone on your body, and not
using your laptop directly on your lap are other simple measures.
You can get cellphone pouches that are shielded on one side, so
putting that side toward your body gives you some protection. Use your
cellphone with a headset or on speaker phone. Work toward hardwiring
your devices so you don't have to be in a Wi-Fi field and don't get
unnecessary radiation from cordless mice, keyboards and printers. It is
also possible to put up shielding in your house or apartment to lower
exposures.
Once you know the mechanism of harm, you have a better idea of how to
remediate the problem. In this case, since we now know the effects of
EMFs are reduced by calcium-channel blockers, a natural solution would
be to make sure you’re getting enough magnesium. Most people are
deficient in magnesium, which will worsen the impact of EMFs. As noted
by Pall:
“It is clear that when you’re deficient in magnesium, you get
excessive activity of the VGCCs. You also get excessive calcium influx
through the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor, caused by magnesium
deficiency, which is also problematic, so it’s important to allay that
deficiency.
Now, I always tell people I’m a Ph.D. and not an M.D. None of
these [suggestions] should be viewed as medical advice. But I think one
approach to dealing with these things is to raise the level of nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), which I published [a paper11] on.”
How to Activate Nrf2 to Reduce EMF Impact
I am in the process of writing a very comprehensive paper on Nrf2,
which is a vitally important biological hormetic that upregulates
superoxide dismutase, catalase and all the other beneficial
intercellular antioxidants. It also:
Lowers inflammation
Improves mitochondrial function
Stimulates mitochondrial biogenesis
Helps detoxify the body from xenobiotics, carbon-containing toxicants and toxic metals
Activates the transcription of over 500 genes in the human genome,
most of which have cytoprotective functions. This includes the three
genes that encode enzymes required for synthesis of reduced glutathione,
which is one of the most important antioxidants produced in your body
One simple way to activate Nrf2 is to consume Nrf2-boosting food
compounds, such as sulforaphane from cruciferous vegetables, foods high
in phenolic antioxidants, the long-chained omega-3 fats
DHA and EPA, carotenoids (especially lycopene), sulfur compounds from
allum vegetables, isothiocyanates from the cabbage group and
terpenoid-rich foods.
Exercise, calorie restriction (such as intermittent fasting) and
activating the NO signaling pathway (one way of doing that is the NO
dump exercise) will also raise Nrf2. In his paper, Pall notes:
“The important detoxification roles of Nrf2 mean that
raising Nrf2 activity is likely to be of particular importance to the
hundreds of millions of people around the globe who are regularly
exposed to toxic chemicals that cause diseases characterized by
oxidative stress, inflammation and mitochondrial dysfunction, diseases
which include most of the chronic diseases of 21st century life.”
“One of the things I argued in that paper is that the two most helpful diets known — the traditional Mediterranean diet and the traditional Okinawan diet — are both high in nutrients that raise Nrf2,” Pall adds.
Take-Home Message
I personally believe EMF exposure may be one of the most significant
factors for the observed decrease in male sperm count, and the increased
prevalence of anxiety, depression, autism and Alzheimer’s. It is also
highly likely a contributing factor to cancer.
While not widely publicized, in May 2011, the cancer research arm of
the World Health Organization, the International Agency for Research on
Cancer, classified radiofrequency EMF — such as the radiation from
cellphones — a class 2B carcinogen, meaning it is possibly carcinogenic
to humans.12
Pall has made a significant contribution to public welfare with his
discovery of how EMFs cause biological harm, and it would be wise to
take notice. I personally believe he deserves a Nobel Prize for his
contribution to the science.
Again, the damage is not done through heat or ionizing radiation;
it’s done by activating your VGCCs, thereby triggering a chain-reaction
that produces excessive amounts of ROS, peroxynitrites and hydroxyl free
radicals — the most destructive free radicals known to man, as well as
through excessive calcium signaling.
Hydroxyl free radicals decimate mitochondrial and nuclear DNA, their
membranes and proteins. Too much calcium in the mitochondria can also
impact their function. The end result is mitochondrial dysfunction,
which we now know is at the heart of most chronic disease. Since your
brain, the pacemaker in your heart and male testes have the highest
densities of VGCCs, these areas are the most prone to damage when
exposed to EMFs.
What this research tells us is that excessive microwave exposure can be a
direct contributor to conditions such as Alzheimer’s, anxiety,
depression, autism, cardiac arrhythmias and infertility.13
So, if you care about your heart, brain and reproductive health, avoid
carrying your cellphone in your pocket or on your hip, avoid using
portable computers and tablets on your lap, and take measures to limit
or eliminate as many unnecessary EMF sources as you can, in your home
and at work.
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