Australasian Journal of Clinical Environmental Medicine - Complete Bullsh*t ??

- My two second review: Wi-Fi may in fact be bad for your health, but this study is so bad it appears to me to be a hoax.

A few weeks ago the news was abuzz with a story that linked wi-fi radiation with autism. At first I couldn't find the journal that the study was published in, but then a helpful reader pointed me to a PDF version. Originally I had intended to read the study "Wireless Radiation in the Etiology and Treatment of Autism: Clinical Observations and Mechanisms" and provide a layman's analysis of the study's methods and findings.

After reading it, I have to agree with the anonymous commenter to my original post. This study is such a huge steaming pile of pseudoscience. To save you from having to read the 5 pages of overview and pseudoscience blended with garbled scientific mumbo-jumbo, I will provide you with my brief notes:

This study looked at clearing of heavy metals from subjects. Study claims that exposure to heavy metals have been implicated as a cause of autism. Primary subject is diagnosed as autistic, and for the last 7 years has had "...a long history of difficulty in clearing metals...." (Whatever that means. Did they feed him heavy metals and see if he excreted them? How did they know his exposure level? And SEVEN YEARS of exposure?)

The idea was to measure heavy metals excreted in hair, feces and urine and determine if excretion increased in an electromagnetic frequency (EMF) free area. The hypothesis is that EMF causes heavy metals to be trapped in cells, thus leading to toxicity which presents itself symptomatically as autism (??? Nice theory, but why? Oh yes...the Thiomersal debate)

So the researches try to construct an EMF free zone by removing all wireless devices from "the building", requiring cell phones to be turned off (! What about the cell tower's radiation?...oh just wait....), installing EMR filters on electrical circuits and appliances, and (my personal favorite) the application of "...body worn sympathetic resonance technology, energy resonance technology and molecular resonance effect technology" WTF? is THAT?!? I had no idea what that was, so I looked it up.

It would appear that the "sympathetic resonance technology" they refer to is the Qlink, as they use that same phrase in marketing material. What is Qlink you ask? It's a fancy 'high-tech' version of a new-age 'crystal'. It appears at first glance to be, oh, complete and utter pseudoscience. It not only protects you from the dangers of electromagnetic fields, but it will also improve your golf game (I wish I were kidding, because that's freaking funny...My favorite quote from the golf video "No one ever thinks, hey you know what, this might be in my head"...uh ...yeah.)

The "molecular resonance effect technology" appears to be some sort of 'energized water' and something of the sort is patented! Energy resonance technology appears to be....ugh..some other crap I don't have time to wade through.

The bottom line, this study looks to me to be complete BS. It seems to prove nothing, other than the fact that the media will run with a story that they think will sell, regardless of its veracity.

It's a good reminder, that when you read that "A study has linked...blah blah blah" Unless you actually read the study, you never know what kind of morons might have 'conducted' it.

Here's more on this ridiculousness, and if you want to waste your life reading the study, have at it(PDF)

The Microwave In Your Lap

Much concern has been raised about the carcinogenic potential of mobile phones. People go so far as to purchase ferrite beads to help clamp any radiation coming from mobile phone headset cords. To be sure, the jury is still out on mobile phone radiation. The fact that they operate at a frequency close to microwaves and are placed so close to a person’s head is the primary reason the alarm has been raised. In light of the new mobile phone/cancer studies, the FDA says it will begin new investigations……Heh, ah…yeah right. Everything the FDA does at this point should be considered corrupt until proven otherwise. But on to the point of this post. Scary microwave ovens operate at 2.45 GHz. Modern mobile phones operate at 2.4 Ghz……And so does your wireless router and Wi-Fi card.

I'm a big fan of Mercola's health blog. But, he frequently touts the benefits of Wi-Fi systems, while at the same time sells the ferrite beads mentioned above. This seems to be a contradiction to me. Hasn’t anyone connected the dots to see that if mobile phones are dangerous, then Wi-Fi is also potentially dangerous? In fact, I would bet that many people are exposed to Wi-Fi radiation for 7-10 hours per day. Much more than normal mobile phone usage. Does your office have a wireless network? Does your laptop or desktop have wireless capability turned on? If so, you’re being showered in 2.4GHz radiation and there’s probably not much you can do about it. All these people with these dorky Bluetooth headsets are probably clueless to the fact that it operates at 2.497 GHz and is placed right up against their heads. I wonder how many people bought one of these things to make their cell phone use safer? It’s true they are very low powered, but still…why not go with a wired headset if you’re clearly not concerned with looking stupid.