Good research is arduous and expensive

So far the Research Association for Radio Applications has commissioned more than 60 surveys, partly very time- and money-consuming, and analysed more than 10,000 references from the international scientific literature. Result: Unequivocal and unmistakable proofs for a health hazard as a consequence of "electrosmog" could not been found.

Because of the great complexity and the correlation of effects, the research is very time- and money-consuming. Research groups have to be created with numerous members from various disciplines. Most of the surveys of the Research Association for Radio Applications are planned for a time period of several years.

The scientific surveys are put up for tender and commissioned by an international committee of experts. In the bid of 1996/97 universities and research institutions took part. Six of the research projects have been commissioned.

The Research Association for Radio Applications attaches great importance to the reproducibility of the scientific investigations and the quality of the experiments. Already in the operating stage the projects of the Research Association for Radio Applications are presented to independant experts and discussed by them.

In the past, false measuring and wrong interpretation often happened in scientific surveys caused by a lack of competence in high-frequency engineering. For this purpose the Research Association for Radio Applications compiled guidelines and made them available to researchers working in this field. (These guidelines exist in English and can be ordered from the Research Association for Radio Applications (Forschungsgemeinschaft Funk e.V., Edition Wissenschaft N°11E)).

For experiments with biological samples each time a special test equipment was developped in order to be able to carry out reliable experiments.

The expenditure for calculation, development and construction of this test set-up, with which numerous experiments - commissioned by the Research Association for Radio Applications - were carried out, is in each case around 100,000 DM.

Do electromagnetic waves influence brain activities?

In a large-scale survey, commissioned by the Research Association for Radio Applications scientists from the Neurological hospital of the University in Bochum examined the influence of "electrosmog" on the human brain. In public discussion "electrosmog" is made responsable for sickness, headaches and lack of concentration.

The electric brain activities were measured by electro-encephalograms (EEG). The scientists' result: Electromagnetic fields do not influence the brainwaves neither the mental capability.

In the experiments of Bochum, for the measurements of the EEG's the conditions existing when calling in a car were imitated. Between the transmitter of a 8-watt mobile phone and the head of the test person a distance of 45 cm was kept. The strength of the electromagnetic field approximately corresponded to the limit values given in the standards. The electrodes fixed to the test person's head transmitted the values of the electric brainwaves. In order to avoid any psychological influence, the 52 test persons in the examinations were not told when the magnetic field was switched on or off. The results of the measurements did not show a significant difference between the switched-on and switched-off test field.

Under the same test conditions, the researchers additionally executed neuropsychological tests. Result: Neither attention nor memory were influenced by electromagnetic waves.

(The complete survey is published as Edition Wissenschaft N° 9.)

Influence of electrical devices by electromagnetic waves

The prohibition of mobile phones in hospitals and nursing homes is growing more frequently.

The reason: There is a mutual interference between electric and electronic devices, and only for few devices precaution is taken to create sufficient resistance to interference or to avoid interference at all.

For the security of implanted cardiac pacemakers, a European standard is existing since the end of 1996. But the regulations cover only the frequency range until 30 MHz. High frequency fields, as they are used for example for mobile radio telephones, are not referred to in this standard.

The Research Association for Radio Application has commissioned several surveys to investigate the influence of electromagnetic waves on cardiac pacemakers. At Gießen University 231 different types of pacemakers from 20 manufacturers were examined.

The result: The function of about 27 percent of all selling pacemakers can theoretically be hampered by a mobile telephone at a distance less than a few centimeters from the body, if there is a coincidence of other disadvantageous factors. As soon as the distance is more than 25 centimeters any interference can be excluded. (The results of the survey are available in Edition Wissenschaft N° 5 and N° 7)

The scientists recommend to implant only cardiac pacemakers whose immunity towards electromagnetic fields, f.ex. of mobile phones, is guaranteed by the manufacturers.

Measurement of Immission Protection in Germany

The valid immission protection limit values for "electrosmog" are observed in Germany. This is the result of a series of measurements of the Federal Office for Post and Telecommunications (Bundesamt für Post und Telekommunikation, BAPT), carried out between 1992 and 1996. Electric and magnetic field strengths at 1250 test points were considered, situated especially at streets, squares and public grounds as well as at schools, nursery schools and hospitals. The measured frequency range was from 9 kHz up to 2,9 GHz, which means that it comprises the frequencies of the mobile radio.

The figures for the measured field strengths mostly were below the allowed threshold values by the factor 100 at least.

A detailled list of the retained measurement figures is available on Internet at: http://www.bapt.de.