The explosion of the digital age in the last century has exposed us to an unprecedented degree of progress. At the same time, it has relentlessly exposed our bodies and minds to never-before-seen levels of EMF radiation.
Today, let’s talk about how this constant exposure to EMF radiation has affected our body’s largest organ - the skin.
The Human Skin: Our First Line of Defense
The human body (including our skin) has evolved over millions of years to help us stay in balance with our surroundings - evolving to regulate and protect ourselves from the constantly changing environment and commonly found pollutants.
With a staggering two to four million sweat glands, our skin acts as an easy route for foreign substances, both to absorb and to eliminate them.
Our skin is what experts call “selectively permeable," meaning that it only allows some things to pass through using diffusion. It has evolved as we have and typically does a great job at protecting us from foreign invaders, but it isn’t perfect.
And here’s where EMF poses a problem.
While evolution is a slow, gradual process, the advent of non-ionizing radiation has been a sudden disruption. This has left nature no time to help us grapple with being exposed to high levels of wireless radiation from all quarters.
Almost instinctively, we know that this can’t be good news.
5 Effects of EMF Radiation on Our Skin
There’s still much research to be done to fully understand the potentially damaging effects of EMF radiation on our bodies. But findings from some recent research on the topic have been eye-opening, to say the least.
1 - Increased Conductivity
According to Dr. Ben-Ishai of Hebrew University, Israel, our sweat ducts are “an array of helical antennas when exposed to these wavelengths.” In short, exposure to EMF makes our bodies more conductive. Typically, raised levels of conductivity in the sweat ducts correlate to an increased level of human stress. The long term ramifications of this are unclear, but they do warn against the unrestricted use of sub-THz frequencies (like 5g) in communications before these consequences have been explored.
2 - Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity
Yes, there’s such a thing as being allergic to EMF. Someone suffering from Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity (EHS) experiences all sorts of acute and chronic symptoms like headaches, pain, and inflammation due to direct tissue penetration. In 2015, the French court awarded a disability grant to a woman who successfully proved that she suffered from EHS from everyday wireless devices like cell phones.
According to a study, biopsies from skin lesions of EHS patients showed infiltration of the epidermis with mast cell degranulation and release of anaphylaxis mediators such as histamine, chymase, and tryptase.
3 - Dermatitis and Burning
Constant exposure to EMF radiation has also been observed to cause prickling, burning, and tingling sensation on the skin. A systematic review of 6 studies revealed a mildly increased risk of skin problems such as facial dermatitis, angiosarcoma of the scalp, and burning sensations in the facial skin on the side exposed to mobile phone use.
Having said that, the overall level of evidence warrants more research on the heavy and long-term epidemiological impact of EMFs, especially mobile phone radiations.
4 - Altered Protein Expression and Morphology
In 2008 a group of experts investigated the effects of local exposure of human skin to radio frequency-modulated (RF) EMF using a proteomics approach. A small portion of the volunteers’ forearms skin was exposed to RF-EMF. Analysis of proteins extracted from exposed and non-exposed skin biopsies showed eight proteins had been significantly affected by the radiation.
5 - Reduced levels of melatonin
An experimental study irradiated a group of rats with 900 MHz for ten days (30 minutes/day) and provided a subgroup with melatonin. At the end of 10 days, skin graft analysis showed layers of increased thickness, deterioration of outer skin layer, impairment in collagen tissue distribution, and separation of collagen bundles in the sensitive layer of skin below the epidermis compared to the control group.
The group with melatonin also didn’t show many of these changes, implying that melatonin is vital to our ability to regenerate and that reduced melatonin levels from EMF exposure hinders our ability to repair damage to our skin.
5G Technology: A New and Evolving Toxin?
It is true that 5G will unlock new benefits for consumers in terms of faster speeds and enhanced bandwidth, bringing the world closer than it already is. However, there’s a reason it is so much faster than previous cellular technologies - it utilizes high-frequency millimeter waves to transmit data. Higher frequency means shorter range, so we’ll need way more towers to cover the same amount of space compared to 4G and 3G.
Given the existing scientific research on EMF's current impact on our skin, it is safe to say that these effects are all set to be amplified manifold with the rollout of 5G. Another recent experimental study at New York University (NYU) looked into the effects of 60 GHz waves and found more than 90% of transmitted electromagnetic power is absorbed within epidermis and dermis layers.
Now imagine being swarmed by up to ten times more cellular towers and antennas everywhere and what it would mean for our health and environment in the long run.
How Can We Keep Toxicity In Check?
With all the wireless radiation emitting devices around us, protecting our health and bodies has become more critical than ever before. After all, we hold the reins to our well-being. Here are some ways by which you can minimize EMF’s impact on your skin:
1 - Limit Your Exposure
Cutting back on using EMF radiating devices by even 30 mins to an hour can do wonders for our health. You can turn off wireless devices and routers when not in use and make sure they are as far away from you as possible at night for improved, restorative sleep quality.
2 - Detoxify
Our bodies are designed to flush out toxins naturally if we allow them to. Naturally, as our largest organ skin plays a vital role in the elimination of toxic substances. We can support body detoxification by staying active, following clean, balanced eating, and taking a break from our gadgets every now and then.
3 - Use Radiation Harmonizing Aids
The presence of healing EMF crystals and other science-backed protective gear in your living and workspace can help in harmonizing our inner energetic fields with external EMF radiation and mitigate the effects of wireless radiation on our bodies.
Final Thoughts
As long as we live in the 21st century, we cannot escape the inevitable proliferation of wireless radiation in some form or the other in our lives. However, we can take steps to minimize its impact on our well-being, and can also take action to ensure our health and interests are protected as best as possible.
References and interesting reads:
- Electrosensitivity: Do EMFs from your devices make you sick?
- How To Detox Naturally From EMF Exposure
- French court awards woman disability grant for 'allergy to gadgets'
- Radiation Effects of Mobile Phones and Tablets on the Skin: A Systematic Review
- Mobile phone radiation might alter protein expression in human skin
- Prevention of mobile phone-induced skin tissue changes by melatonin in rat: an experimental study
- Safe for Generations to Come
- A Guide to Creating Body Care & Bath Product DIYs with Essential Oils
- The human skin as a sub-THz receiver - Does 5G pose a danger to it or not