Project NEMESIS: Perception of a 50 Hz electric and magnetic field at low intensities (laboratory experiment)

Abstract

The Electrical Hypersensitivity Syndrome (EHS) is a condition where people suffer from various nonspecific health symptoms attributed to an assumed adverse effect of electric and magnetic fields (EMF). Many EHS patients report the ability to consciously perceive EMF at very low intensities. The existence of a direct EMF perception could be the key to explain at least partially the aetiology of EHS through stress mechanisms and allow the comparison with well known environmental stressors such as noise or odor. The double blind laboratory experiment tested the hypothesis that there are subjects with the ability to perceive 50 Hz EMF at 100 V/m and 6 microT (EMF sensitive) and to investigate the prevalence of EMF sensitivity in a group consisting of subjects with or without self-reported EHS. A total of 63 volunteers, 49 with EHS and 14 controls, took part in the EMF perception experiment, where 10 sham and 10 exposed 2 min blocks had to be judged in randomized sequence (field on/field off). Seven out of 63 subjects reached a statistically significant result which points to the existence of a small EMF sensitive subgroup within the study group. There was no relevant difference between the subjects with self reported EHS and those without in terms of the success rate in the field perception experiment, as well as the number and types of symptoms encountered during the test. The results of the EMF perception experiment suggest that EHS is not a prerequisite for the ability to consciously perceive weak EMF and vice versa.

The “Mainzer EMF‐Wachhund”: results from a watchdog project on self‐reported health complaints attributed to exposure to electromagnetic fields

“…This supports findings of previous studies, in which such differences have also been observed [Oftedal et al, 2000;Stenberg et al, 2002]. It may also explain some of the ambiguity of past research, specifically provocation experiments, in which no clear pattern of reactions among self-proclaimed EMF hypersensitives and also control groups were found [Flodin et al, 2000;Huber et al, 2000;Koivisto et al, 2001;Lyskov et al, 2001;Hietanen et al, 2002;Mueller et al, 2002;Haarala et al, 2004]. If probands in experimental studies are recruited among self-proclaimed EH subjects and from a random sample of the population as a control group, the group of persons experiencing health complaints from EMF and not regarding themselves as EH may be missed, as they are not self-proclaimed EH subjects and, as a group, are too small to be sufficiently represented in the control group.…”

Hypersensitivity to RF fields emitted from CDMA cellular phones: A provocation study

“…This implies that EHS could not only deteriorate the quality of individual patients' lives, but also cause an increase of social expenses for health care. Mueller et al [2002] found that 7 of 63 subjects showed statistically significant results that pointed to the existence of a small 50 Hz EMF-sensitive subgroup within the study group that consisted of 49 EHS and 14 non-EHS persons. However, there was no difference in EMF perception between the subjects with and without selfreported hypersensitivity, suggesting that subjective hypersensitivity is not a prerequisite for the ability to perceive EMF and vice versa.…”

Effect of short-wave (6-22 MHz) magnetic fields on sleep quality and melatonin cycle in humans: the Schwarzenburg shut-down study

“…This suggests that there might be a group of people who are sensitive to electromagnetic field exposure. This phenomenon has been described as electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS) [Bergqvist and Vogel, 1997;Radon and Maschke, 1998;Hillert et al, 2002;Levallois, 2002;Mueller et al, 2002;Leitgeb and Schrottner, 2003;Röösli et al, 2004]. It is conceivable, however, that poor sleepers were more emotionally involved in the study and we cannot rule out the possibility of psychologically mediated effects on melatonin excretion.…”