Health Effects

The issue of extremely low frequency (ELF) biological effects is very controversial. Research has focused on possible carcinogenic, reproductive, and neurological effects. Other suggested health effects include cardiovascular, brain and behavior, hormonal and immune system changes.

General Health Effects Reviews

• Electromagnetic Fields. World Health Organization (WHO). Links to studies and publications.
• Electric & Magnetic Fields. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), National Institutes of Health (NIH).
• AIHA White Paper on Extremely Low Frequency (ELF) Fields. American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), (June 15, 1993). Summarizes the biological and health effects associated with exposure to ELF fields and present exposure guidelines.
• Review of the Epidemiologic Literature on EMF and Health. International Commission for Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) Standing Committee on Epidemiology, (December 2001).

Leukemia and Other Cancers

• Electric & Magnetic Fields. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), National Institutes of Health (NIH).
• ELF Electromagnetic Fields and the Risk of Cancer: Report of an Advisory Group on Non-ionising Radiation. Health Protection Agency (HPA), National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) Documents, Volume 12, No.1. Reviews the evidence on cancer risks from residential and occupational extremely low frequency (ELF)- electric magnetic field (EMF) exposures, which has been published since an earlier NRPB report (1992).

Static Fields

Note: Although static fields are not part of the radio frequency (RF) spectrum, static is most closely associated with extremely low frequency (ELF), and so it is included here. At this time, there is no Static Fields Safety and Health Topics page.

• Electromagnetic Fields. World Health Organization (WHO). Links to studies and publications.