Exposure limits & oversight

Dear FCC, My family is sensitive to electromagnetic radiation (EMR) and are unfortunately exposed to more and more EMR every time we go to town. 5G cell towers are popping up everywhere and the march of smart gadgets are hard to avoid. I personally get severe headaches when I’m near WIFI for any length of time. We have to pay our electric company extra every month to avoid having a smart meter placed outside our bedroom. The corporate push to use EMR in all aspects of our daily lives is literally killing us and needs to be regulated through new independent scientific studies overseen by reputable non-profits like the Environmental Health Trust. Why has FCC not conducted regular safety studies on new cell phones using 5G and 6G? We know that 2G-4G negatively impacted rat health in laboratory studies. The evidence is there but the public continues to be misled and unprotected by irresponsible corporate greed. Lawsuits are overdue on the subject of human EMR exposure! We trust FCC will serve the public good and do the right thing in regulating EMR in the near future. Thank you

I am extremely concerned that there has been no legitimate research done on the short term or long term effects of EMF on our children or even on adults. With the advent of 5G, I fear the damage could be greater every day. Stop this running locomotive wino guardrails. I can’t submit any files because the the research is lacking. It’s not been done!

I am submitting these comments as an individual. These comments share my personal and family experiences with man-made EMR illness and can thus be categorized as answering Question 3 on HHS’s Request for Information. I am a US citizen and a resident of Massachusetts. I am 34 years old and currently living in a semi-rural residential neighborhood, sharing a home with my parents and three adult siblings. One reason why we live together is our inability to find other living situations where we can avoid man-made electromagnetic radiation (EMR). All of us experience symptoms of EMR exposure when we spend time in commercial or urban areas in our region. [3c] Symptoms include headaches, vertigo, nausea, cognitive dysfunction, “brain fog,” chronic fatigue, skin rashes, full body bloating, diarrhea, tinnitus, and impaired motor control. [3f] We have been able to mitigate EMR exposure in our own home such that when these symptoms are triggered by EMR exposures outside our home, we can return home to recover. [3b] Recovery takes hours to days to weeks, depending on the severity and duration of exposure. [3a, f] We have taken measures on our own property to ensure that our home remains a sanctuary from EMR. We do not have a “smart” utility meter. We do not have any LED or fluorescent lights in our home—only incandescent (and a few halogen) lights whose radiation is closer to that of natural light. We do not have WiFi routers in our home. We use laptop computers (not on our laps!) with WiFi and Bluetooth capabilities disabled, and with internet access via hardwired ethernet. We have resisted our internet service provider’s efforts to upgrade our service box to a newer model that emits more EMR. There is enough distance between our house and our neighbors’ houses so that our neighbors’ WiFi signals are significantly reduced (though still present) in our home. The nearest cell tower is on the other side of a hill from our house. We do not own cell phones or any other “smart” devices; thus, we do not have devices calling for the cell tower’s signal from our house. We do not drive electric cars or have solar panels on our roof. While it is impossible to completely eliminate wireless EMR from our home (we still have cell service, as well as weak WiFi access from our neighbors’ houses), the difference between the EMR in our home and in the stores, schools, homes, and public buildings we visit is extremely evident—as measured both by our EMR exposure symptoms and by our handheld RF and Tri-field meters. [3g] As an example of meter readings, our home regularly measures under 10 microwatts per meter squared of RF radiation as measured on a handheld “Safe and Sound Pro II” meter (which measures radiation in the 200 megaHertz to 8 gigaHertz frequency range), and often under 2, while commercial and public buildings often measure in the tens of thousands. We are able to tolerate our home environment, and we often cannot tolerate other environments for longer than a short visit, if at all. It is important for our health and ability to live that we are able to maintain our home as the relative EMR oasis that it is. This means, in particular, retaining the rights to purchase incandescent light bulbs, to live without smart phones, to refuse smart-meter installation, and to reject cell towers or other wireless radiation infrastructure projects in our neighborhood. While we are able to live in our home, we are increasingly unable to leave our home without getting ill due to the continued increase in EMR in our broader communities. Society-wide scaling back of EMR technologies would enable us to participate more in our local communities and the broader society (e.g., to work) without getting so ill. When we go out into the world—to grocery stores, to schools, on public transportation—we observe that many people are dealing with illnesses similar to our EMR-induced illness, though our broader society fails to make the connection. We appreciate any efforts by HHS to address the nationwide illness crisis caused by our wireless telecommunications infrastructure. Regarding questions 12 and 14: Two useful sources of scientific evidence of EMR health and environmental harms are (1) the book “The Invisible Rainbow: A History of Electricity and Life” by Arthur Firstenberg, information available at https://cellularphonetaskforce.org/, and (2) the essay “When Light Turns to Darkness: Electromagnetic Radiation and Health: Are Our Wireless Technologies Harming Us?” by Margot DesBois, which distills much of the information in Firstenberg’s book and can be found online here: https://www.desboistutoring.org/when-light-turns-to-darkness-03-18-25.html.

I have been extremely concerned about the toxic EMFs, RF radiation and Wireless exposure that are harming America. Although I realize that we as Americans need and demand technology, much effort has been made to shield people from the knowledge of the damage caused by EMFs. Such efforts as the purchase of expensive scalar technology, use of faraday cages, shutting down of Wi-Fi at night, and other attempts to protect myself have been employed over the years. However, these attempts only result in minor protections. I am asking the government to initiate creative solutions and communications regarding this increasing damage to our bodies and our environment. Thank you so much for this opportunity. I've waited a long time!

Personal Statement Re: EMF, RF, and Wireless Radiation Exposure: I am submitting this comment as a concerned citizen and someone who has been personally effected by wireless radiation. In 2009, in the middle of the day, there was a knock on our door. I opened it and it was a utility worker. He said he was going to switch out our meter to a smart meter and it would only take about 10 minutes. I said “Ok” and went about my business in our house. Almost immediately (within 24 hours) everyone in our house began having problems and unexplained health issues. We homeschool our kids and so we were home a lot. My 10 year old son began coming up to me, multiple times a day, complaining that his ears were buzzing and he couldn’t make it stop. My husband began complaining headaches, which progressed to migraines. I began having a variety of issues such as dizziness and racing heart. Our baby was noticeably bothered, crying and not sleeping—we all were having sleep disturbance. Trying to figure out why our family was falling apart suddenly took me on a long journey starting on the internet. I kept coming back to the day it all started and the utility worker who showed up at our door and the smart meter placement—I knew, intuitively, this is what had changed in our environment. After much research, which was more sparse at the time, it was apparent that we were suffering with commonly known effects of the smart meter. I have been told that at some houses, they place “collector meters” which collects data from the neighboring houses, and that these give off more EMF radiation than other meters. With our lives turned upside down, we eventually moved out-of-state and to a house with no smart meter—and our symptoms dissipated; yet we are now more sensitive to wireless exposures. We can tell when we are in wireless saturated environments. Places we used to enjoy, like the library, certain stores or restaurants near cell towers, malls, etc., are almost unbearable to stay at for any length of time. Even though our smart meter experience had a negative impact on our lives, we were able to make adjustments to everyday living which kept us healthier and more vital in the long run; things such as hardwiring our internet, keeping a wifi-free environment at home, using shielding on modems/routers when we travel, using cellphones only when needed (mostly keeping them off) and having a landline phone. We can see the difference it has made in our lives and our kids' lives, especially compared to other kids who are our kids' age who seem to have trouble with keeping attention and are generally more agitated. Yet we cannot live in a bubble. Traveling can make it difficult to control our environment. In one instance, when we were traveling, we were staying at an Airbnb and it felt awful there for ALL of us, despite unplugging the wifi router. I brought out my TriField EMF meter and the found where the exposure was. It was outside the house. The house was next to the highway with 5G antenna poles placed all along the highway. We were all bothered while there and couldn’t sleep. I got in the car and slept about a mile down the road and we left the next morning as soon as the sun came up. Going on this journey, I have spoken to many people about this issue and have heard so many stories, like mine, from a host of people; people who have been permanently disabled by wireless radiation—like those who were living in apartment buildings on the opposite wall of an entire panel of utility meters that were switched out with smart meters and can no longer function in society. I know some people who live like refugees because they can’t get away from wireless exposures, so they live in their cars. I have heard stories from longtime teachers who suffer in their classrooms and see the harm it is causing to the students, who became agitated, have headaches, and can’t think like they used to after wireless was introduced in their classrooms. The teachers try to decrease the exposures in the classroom, with limited success and without administration support. I respectfully request and implore you to reassess the exposure limits of all wireless devices and infrastructure and look at the effects it has on our health and well being as well as to the natural world. There are so many studies that show the harmful biological effects, going back many, many decades out of Israel, Italy, Russia etc. These, as well as the large body of more recent studies should be more than enough to light the way to what has been going on, more than simply looking at thermal (heat) effects. Please do the right thing for our citizens, our children, animals, pollinators, birds and our entire world and look at the large body of independent, biological studies on wireless radiation. Please also look at what other industrial countries have done to limit wireless/EMF exposure and protect their citizens. Thank you-

I live in a suburban area less than 1 mile from a 5g wireless tower. I am concerned about radiation exposure from EMFs, RF radiation, and Wireless radiation exposure. I consider myself sensitive to the radiation in my area and bought a EMF-390 device to measure. I have attached some random exposure pictures over a few days. Sometimes I can get low to 0 readings, other times I get high radiation exposure numbers. When the numbers are indicating high exposure levels I suffer from headaches, body aches/joint pain, fatigue, insomnia, as well as hot/cold flashes. I would also refer to Len Ber's comments regarding diagnosed civilian Havana Syndrome/Anomalous Health Incidents (AHI) victims have no federal case definition, reporting pathway, or case definition. I ask that you recognize AHI1 as a novel clinical phenotype and to set safety standards for exposure limits and parameters associated with this condition. Directed, pulsed RF energy is the leading scientific explanation for Havana Syndrome/AHI1.

Dear Sirs, We examined data on cancer cases with occupational exposure to radio-frequency radiation (RFR) in military settings. We published our findings in several papers (attached). These studies make the case for a carcinogenic effect from occupational exposure to RFR. Our findings highlight a special case where intense, short-term occupational exposure induces cancer with short latencies.• The following outlines a summary of our latest research - Peleg et al 2023. Research Subject: A group of young cancer patients previously exposed to RFR in military occupational settings. Exposures: Exposures originated from military radio communication transmitters, radar, and electronic warfare transmitters. Exposures were repetitive, typically spanning over a year or more. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) exposure levels are guided by occupational standards set by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP). These standards permit an average power that is higher by a factor of 5 relative to the ICNIRP recommendations for the general population, and higher by a factor of 50 relative to the Israeli recommendations for the general population. Furthermore, those standards barely limit the peak power of radar pulses, provided the average power remains within permissible limits. Energy concentrated in strong pulses may be more bioactive. Method: Most of the information was gathered directly from the patients (n=46), the majority of whom were trained operators, technicians, and engineers. For a small subgroup of patients (n=6), the size of the total exposed population was known, enabling us to estimate cancer risk ratios (RR) relative to the general population. Because the total size of the exposed population was unavailable for most patients, we examined the distribution of cancer cases by type using the percentage frequencies (PF) method. The following outlines a summary of our latest research Results: The onset of exposure was from age 18 onward. The duration of exposure ranged between 1 and 3 years, and latencies from the onset of exposure to diagnosis were brief, with a median of 4.6 years. The RR for cancer in the small subgroup was remarkably high— 8.0 with a 95% confidence interval (CI) of (2.9% - 17%). The PF for hematolymphoid cancers (leukemia, lymphoma, and plasma cell cancers) was 41.3%, 95% CI (27%–57%), which is nearly twice the 22.7% expected in non-exposed subjects matched for age and gender profiles (p = 0.003). The data from our most recent study confirm the findings of our previous papers. Moreover, the foregoing results are consistent with the outcomes of other studies conducted elsewhere. Recommendations: Radiofrequency radiation (RFR) should be formally recognized as a human carcinogen (upgraded to IARC Group 1). Human exposure should be strictly limited to low levels, such as an average level of 1 μW/cm² and a peak pulse level of 5 μW/cm². The suggested average level is within the range of typical community levels. Finally, there is an urgent need to recognize and implement regulations for peak exposures as well as average exposures.

Question 3 Thank you for the opportunity to share with you my personal experience of exposure to ElectroMagnetic Radiation (EMR). I became sensitive to EMR when electricity smart meters were first installed in my area. I did not know that they had been installed on the houses two properties away from mine. I couldn’t understand why I was suddenly sleeping poorly, waking at exactly 1.30 AM and 5.00 AM every morning. I would wake with what seemed like an adrenaline burst and it would take me 2 hours to get back to sleep. Given that I was working at the time, this was not conducive to performing well in my job and it contributed to my job loss shortly after. This rendered me unable to ever work again as my new electro-sensitivity meant every work place was now a threat, due to pervasive EMR from wi-fi networks, cell phones, and numerous other RF emitting devices. After two weeks, I recalled that smart meters were due to be installed around that time and when I asked the neighbor two properties away, he said that a smart meter had been installed on their property on the very day I started experiencing insomnia. I had been alerted to the problems with smart meters several months earlier by a TV news report. Some people like to say that electro-sensitivity is a nocebo effect. But it took me two weeks to make the connection between my new insomnia and the installation of smart meter. I experience a large variety of symptoms, including heart problems, insomnia, stinging pains in my body, agitation, head pain, dry eyes, skin and lips, and neuropathy, but I challenge the ‘nocebo experts’ to explain to me how I can knowingly will my nose to bleed when exposed to EMR. I have spent thousands of dollars trying to protect myself from RF entering my home and body. But every time I think I’ve achieved some level of success in protecting myself, a new source of RF invades my home, leaving me struggling to address the new situation. It is a case of two steps forward, three steps back. I have given up all my recreational activities due to the impossibility of avoiding cell phones and cell phone tower radiation. I am a prisoner in my home, but my home isn’t safe either. I have to ‘pick my poison’. Becoming sensitive to radio frequencies has also made me sensitive to other types of EMR, such as magnetic fields, electric fields on wiring and harmonics on wiring (dirty electricity). My life has been turned upside down by radio frequencies. This is not a minor inconvenience. Hardly an hour goes by when I am not in distress from one or more symptoms. Others have been forced to move to remote, inhospitable locations, often even leaving family members behind in the city. Some have committed suicide. And yet, research papers (usually those funded by industry) can find no cause for concern with RF. ORSAA in Australia (https://www.orsaa.org/) has collated hundreds of research papers to show a plethora of papers finding health effects from EMR. Clearly protection standards are inadequate. I became ill over a decade ago from EMR that was a lower frequency and lower pervasiveness than I am currently exposed to. My health has continued to deteriorate with each new environmental EMR assault. If my body couldn’t cope over a decade ago, how much less can it cope today with ubiquitous cell phones, wi-fi networks, cell towers, smart watches, etc, etc.? The strength of RF signals needs to be decreased. Wired internet connections should be used where possible, especially in hospitals, nursing homes and schools. Cell phone towers should not duplicate coverage. Rather, providers should share their resources so that people are not assaulted by multiple cell towers in range of each other. Cell phones should be more stringently tested to ensure that they do not exceed safety standards. We need to investigate the multiplicity of electro-sensitivity symptoms and stop relying on the thermal effect as if only heating of tissues causes distress. I am also concerned about magnetic fields from electricity substations and power lines. The protection standards are woefully inadequate. Building biologists recommend lower than 2 mG, but ICNIRP recommends below 2,000 mG. That’s a huge difference. I am alarmed at the number of buildings being erected with substations incorporated into them. Who is spending their day on the other side of the wall/floor/ceiling from the substation? And it seems that it is now ok to build homes close to high voltage powerlines. In fact, if the powerlines run underground where no-one can see them, power companies are happy to install high voltage powerlines within a metre of (existing) homes. I should know; that is the situation I am in. All of this is also contributing to high ground current which then enters the home as harmonics/dirty electricity.

I write this as a person who has not been able to be a part of society for the last 9 years. Not able to grocery shop or go anywhere there is a mobile phone tower, any Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or someone using any digital device because of the pain and harm it causes my body. The pain is felt immediately when someone comes near me with any digital device. I can feel it before I see it. Therefore have not been able to work or do usual activities and as a result have been forced to live in a rare place with no RF frequencies and NO LIFE. The difference in health and pain levels is enormous. I know someone who cannot even use a computer to fill this comment out as she has to live with no power whatsoever. Our whole lives have been taken away from us due to other people using digital devices and what I see as absolutely no regulation due to the $$$ being made at our health's expense. There have been enough studies for decades and enough researchers, scientists and doctors speaking about the harms but they are silenced. I have not been able to live in my own home due to the 100's of towers and devices nearby trespassing into it and being assaulted. I understand the safety testing fake person mannequin SAMe is based on a man weighing more than 4 times than I do. This is a big deal and fake science used by the industry for illusion of safety. This certainly does not protect children. You also do not get any disability or care help or acknowledgment of disability impairment from bodily assault. What we do get however is to be an outcast and excluded from society. Please remove all digital wireless technology as it is very harmful to all life. Thank you! See attached file(s)

I am writing to ask that HHS to adopt RF exposure limits that are protective of human health and the environment. Current exposure limits must be updated. I also ask that Section 704 of the TCA be amended to allow our local governing authorities the ability to consider this important factor when deciding on the future of our neighborhoods. The world’s biggest insurance companies like Swiss Re have EMF exclusions in their policies because they understand the risks of wireless radiation exposure. Environmental Health Sciences discusses this liability shield: “Major insurers rank radiofrequency (RF) radiation emitted by cell towers as a “high-risk” liability, often comparing the issue to asbestos or lead. The Swiss Re Institute, a leading authority in reinsurance, has categorized 5G as an “off-the-leash” risk—a designation for unpredictable threats with potentially widespread impact…Telecom companies reassure communities that cell towers are “safe,” yet they warn their shareholders of cell tower radiation-related risks in their annual reports, stating that regulations could change or legal cases could result in unfavorable rulings – which could impact their cash flow.” Our county codes, health recommendations and building permits reflect the HHS policies that date back decades. It is time to update policies with the known science of EMF / RF radiation harm.