ORIGINAL COMMENT · UNEDITED TEXT
I submit this comment as someone concerned with the scientific evidence on RF/EMF health effects. HHS should prioritize independent research into nonthermal mechanisms (oxidative stress, DNA effects, neuroendocrine disruption, cumulative exposure), update assessment methods for real-world multi-source long-duration conditions, and evaluate whether current federal limits protect human and animal populations. I do not consent to further exposure from these improperly evaluated EMF technologies without adequate safety testing for optimal human health and longevity. My response draws on the research, clinical observations, and congressional testimony of Robert O. Becker, MD (1923–2008), orthopedic surgeon and bioelectromagnetics pioneer at Syracuse VA Hospital and SUNY Upstate. He authored over 150 papers, books including The Body Electric and Electromagnetism and Life, and testified to Congress and state commissions.
Becker established that organisms generate and respond to minute electrical currents and EMFs regulating growth, CNS function, and biological cycles. Man-made EMFs far below thermal levels act as nonspecific biological stressors producing wide adverse effects. Key findings (Questions 5, 6, 11, 12): The “thermal-effects-only” doctrine is obsolete. Organisms have specialized mechanisms (including pineal sensitivity) tuned to Earth’s magnetic cycles. Chronic man-made fields disrupt these, inducing chronic stress with weight loss, diminished immunity, neuroendocrine changes, and altered brain function. Cellularly, exposure accelerates DNA production and alters chromosomes, raising growth rates and genetic abnormalities. Clinically this yields reduced fertility, low birth weights, higher infection/cancer susceptibility, birth defects (eg, Down syndrome), and psychological disturbances.
Evidence includes: 60-Hz environmental fields causing stress hormonal/body-weight/blood changes across mouse generations (third-generation infant mortality 50% vs <5%); geomagnetic storm correlations with schizophrenia admissions in >16,000 patients; human reaction-time increases from low-strength VLF fields; animal findings of deficient bone healing, altered growth, and tumor-cell chromosome changes. Becker linked post-1900 power and communications EMFs, the most drastic alteration of Earth’s electromagnetic environment, to rises in birth defects, cancers, mental disorders, and teenage suicide. These fields act at fundamental levels rather than causing single specific diseases.
U.S. limits rested on the inadequate thermal-only model. Military/regulatory responses often denied nonthermal effects or issued biased reviews (eg, Navy ELF studies). Becker called for independent research, free of industry/military conflict and risk-benefit decisions by the exposed population. Children, developing organisms, and those with preexisting conditions need particular attention due to higher cell-division rates and cumulative disruption. Cumulative exposures from power systems plus wireless technologies (phones, Wi-Fi, smart meters, 5G/6G, IoT) have intensified.
Precautionary reductions in unnecessary exposure, especially in schools, homes, and near infrastructure are warranted. Becker’s conclusion remains pertinent: man-made EMFs constitute a serious health hazard requiring urgent steps. I urge HHS to give substantial weight to this foundational evidence.
References
1. Becker RO. Statement before the House Subcommittee on Water and Power Resources. October 6, 1987. https://www.robertobecker.net/PDFs/1987PowerlinesStatement.pdf
2. Becker RO. Statement of Robert O. Becker, M.D., to Subcommittee on Public Health of the U.S. House of Representatives in connection with hearings on H.R. 10790, Radiation Control for Health and Safety Act of 1967. https://www.robertobecker.net/PDFs/BF037-HR10790Statement1967.pdf
3. Becker RO. The possible hazards of human exposure to magnetic fields. Consultant report for the Joint Technical Advisory Subcommittee 63.1.4. IEEE; 1968.
4. Becker RO, Selden G. The Body Electric: Electromagnetism and the Foundation of Life. William Morrow; 1985.
5. Becker RO, Marino AA. Electromagnetism and Life. State University of New York Press; 1982.