W.E.E.P. News
Wireless Electrical and Electromagnetic Pollution News
9 December 2010
Doctors for Safer Skies and Safer Schools
Drs. Stephen Sinatra (MD) and Kerry Crofton (PhD) have recently initiated two new associations:
1. Doctors for Safer Skies
2. Doctors for Safer Schools
Both are very much needed and timely. We now have full-body scans at airports and WiFi on airplanes. We also have more schools installing wireless internet access (WiFi). Students, teachers, pilots and flight attendants as well as those who work at airports have no one to speak on their behalf about the harmful effects of this radiation since the federal government in both Canada and the US is unwilling to admit that the current levels may be harmful.
We need doctors speaking out about this issue and these two associations can play a very important role in this respect.
Please see the attached PDF poster
-magda
Dr Magda Havas
drmagdahavas@gmail.com
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Parents share their Wi-Fi fears
By BRENDAN WEDLEY , EXAMINER STAFF WRITER
http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2880576
A group of parents s push to get the local public school board to halt the phasing in of wireless Internet technology in schools with a public information session Tuesday night.
Several guest speakers spoke to about 75 people at the meeting held at Westdale United Church on Sherbrooke St.
The organizers played a Global News show on the Wi-Fi debate that featured the campaign in Peterborough as well as other cases across the country.
Magda Havas, a Trent University associate professor who conducts electromagnetic radiation research, spoke about the concerns about using Wi-Fi in schools.
No one has the definitive answer on whether using Wi-Fi, which wirelessly connects computers to each other and to the Internet, in schools is safe, Havas said.
"We do have evidence suggesting that it might not be safe and this is why so many people are concerned," she said. "We don't want children to be used as guinea pigs while we determine whether or not they're reacting immediately in terms of heart palpitations or later on in terms of cancer."
Havas told the audience about cases of people who are sensitive to electromagnetic radiation.
"Students and teachers are getting sick in schools with Wi- Fi," she said.
Peterborough medical officer of health Dr. Rosana Pellizzari has said there is no consistent evidence that exposure to radio frequency signals from wireless networks has an adverse impact on the general population.
Havas criticized Health Canada's regulations for exposure to radiation from wireless technology, pointing to much lower limits established by some other countries.
Havas mentioned that in the last three years two students in the Barrie area died from sudden cardiac arrest.
Someone in the audience immediately questioned whether Havas was saying that Wi-Fi caused the cardiac arrests.
Havas responded that she wasn't suggesting it was caused by Wi-Fi but the incidence of sudden cardiac arrest is high in this region.
"Much of this is associated with exercise and both of them have been revived," she said. "We need to find out what it is, whether it's a genetic problem or whether it's something that they're exposed to."
Kim Muzatko, who has a five-year- old son in a local school, wants the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board to not install Wi-Fi in schools.
"I'm concerned that there's no evidence that it's safe," she said as she left the meeting. "We need to learn from history that we shouldn't rush ahead with things."
Muzatko added that Internet provided through hard wires is faster and more reliable than wireless Internet.
"I really can't see the benefit of risking it," she said.
Adults are responsible for protecting children, Havas said.
"It's really important for us to take a stand and to protect them as much as we possibly can and to err on the side of caution," she said. "We can't afford to make a mistake when it comes to the health of children in schools."
bwedley@peterboroughexaminer.com
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Wisconsin Smart Meters
See what's been going on in Wisconsin, USA
People who are electrically sensitive are being forced to have smart meters installed. It is disgusting.
http://firstdonoharmblog.blogspot.com/2010/11/wisconsin-utilities-bullying-customers.html
C. Zehfus
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CFS Environmental Directory
This entire listing is from the Chemical Injury Information Network's (CIIN) Environmental Directory. It only includes MCS listings - although they also have listings for Gulf War, CFS, children's health, foreign groups, etc. Please visit the Chemical Injury Information Network (CIIN) site and support their efforts by becoming a member.
http://www.snowcrest.net/lassen/eimcsorg.html
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From: Sandi Maurer
To: CHE EMF List
Sent: Monday, December 06, 2010 7:58 PM
Subject: Huffman Introduces Bill to Require Smart Meter Opt-Out
California Assembly member Jared Huffman has introduced legislation (AB 37) to allow customers to opt out of wireless Smart Meters.
http://sananselmofairfax.patch.com/articles/huffman-introduces-bill-to-require-smart-meter-opt-out
Assemblymember Jared Huffman announced today that he is introducing a bill that would require the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to provide a way for consumers to opt-out of PG&E's Smart Meter program.
The inability of residents to not receive the new digital, wireless meters has been a sticking point for critics who are concerned about health, security, privacy and accuracy issues around the Smart Meters. Huffman's bill, AB 37, would require the CPUC to provide an opt-out alternative for customers who do not wish to have the meters installed and it would require utilities to provide a wired alternative to the wireless meter.
"I think it's going to represent a pretty significant improvement over the status quo," said Huffman. "There will be people who think it doesn't go far enough."
PG&E has said in recent weeks that it is considering the possibility of a wired alternative to the wireless meter, which works through a series of radio and cellular networks.
However, the CPUC has long maintained that the deployment of 10 million meters throughout California is part of a national smart grid that requires all consumers to be included and, therefore, has not allowed people the option of opting-out of the program. The CPUC also denied a petition to place a temporary moratorium on the deployment of the meters while these issues were examined.
Earlier this summer, Huffman also requested a study from theCalifornia Council on Science and Technology to look into the health issues surrounding the meters and the radio frequency and electro-magnetic frequencies standards established by the FCC. Though the meters meet current FCC standards, the question from the EMF Safety Network, which filed a petition with the CPUC, has been whether those standards are sufficient.
Huffman said, from what he has heard about the work being done by the California Council, that the new study "is not going to conclusively resolve this debate."
That study is expected to be released later this month in draft form, but Huffman said he believed the question of individual choice was a separate issue, which is why he felt compelled to bring forward this bill before the study was completed.
"The question is for individuals who believe their health is at risk to have a choice," said Huffman.
The bill next goes to the Assembly Utilities and Commerce Committee in early spring. From there, it could move out of committee for a vote.
Huffman said he has not only received positive input from colleagues, but also from the CPUC. He said the commission was receptive to working with the legislature on an appropriate opt-out option.
Currently, 7.5 million meters have been installed throughout California and are continuing to be installed. Installation began in Marin this year and, except for in Fairfax, has continued on schedule and is expected to be completed throughout the county by 2012. PG&E is voluntarily temporarily delaying installation in Fairfax.
The Fairfax Town Council additionally passed a one-year moratorium on the meters, which PG&E has suggested has no legal authority over the utility.
"The best I can do is move this bill forward as quickly as I can," said Huffman.
Currently, those who have concerns are encouraged to call PG&E and asked to placed on a delay list in order to delay the installation of their meters.
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Dental cone-beam CT scan
HSI eAlert
Dear Reader,
As if the physical and emotional torture of getting braces weren't enough, it turns out it could pose a long-term danger for our kids as well. You see, with all those visits to be fitted and then to have their braces checked, they've probably been exposed to staggering levels of radiation.
And what's worse: All that exposure is completely unnecessary.
For this you can thank technological progress. And we've seen this familiar story many times before: Progress rushes in, fueled by huge profits, while safety oversight comes poking along, way too late.
But it's never too late to take action now and just say, "NO!"
Dangerous fun
The new technology is an imaging tool called a cone-beam CT scan. Dentists like it because it creates crisp 3-D images of the jaw and teeth, including roots. This is useful for complex problems like impacted teeth.
And kids actually like CT scan too because of what one orthodontist calls the "wow factor." On the computer display, kids can see their entire skull in vibrant colors.
As the orthodontist told the New York Times: "Fun for the kids."
Fun...but dangerous.
A Times investigation reveals that this ingenious scanning method emits a massive radiation dose--much more radiation than a conventional x-ray. And it's a huge risk for kids, because children--especially adolescents--are much more vulnerable to the effects of radiation than adults.
The enhanced detail of a CT scan image is helpful for orthodontists. But over the course of braces maintenance, patients usually get several scans.
And unfortunately, scientists believe the effects of these powerful scans are cumulative. So the long-term risk of cancer is doubled after the second scan, tripled after the third, etc.
Now...here's what's infuriating: Orthodontists and dentists can also produce 3-D images with a digital camera that emits no radiation. But using the digital camera takes about a half-hour longer than the CT scan. And those half-hours add up, preventing orthodontists from booking higher numbers of patients each day.
Fueled by misinformation
But there's one more detail about dental CT scans that actually goes WAY beyond infuriating. (My dentist would NOT be happy with me right now because I'm actually grinding my teeth as I write this.)
The selling of cone-beam CT technology has been outright dishonest.
In an online lecture earlier this year, a prominent 3-D technology expert who gives frequent professional presentations told attendees that the CT scan produces no more radiation than airport full-body scans.
But the director of the Center for Radiological Research at Columbia University Medical Center told the Times that such an estimate is "very wrong--by a lot." In fact, he says CT scanners can be SEVERAL HUNDRED TIMES more powerful than those controversial new airport scanners.
Unfortunately, this wildly misleading "estimate" is fairly popular.
An article in a recent issue of the Journal of the American Dental Association stated that radiation from a CT scan is equal to--yep--an airport full-body scan.
Funny thing though: That entire JADA issue was devoted to cone-beam technology. In fact, the issue was actually underwritten by one of the leading makers of CT scanners.
Arrrgh! The dental mainstream is just as bad as the medical mainstream!
Here's how the Times sums it up: "The cone beam's popularity has been fueled in part by misinformation about its safety and efficacy."
"Misinformation?" That's a tactful way of saying what it really is: lies.
Please warn your friends and family about this travesty--especially those who have kids who may soon be headed to their first orthodontist appointment.
But this warning is for everyone--not just kids. The next time your dentist needs to x-ray your teeth, ask him what technology he's using.
If he says, "cone-beam," tell him you don't mind taking the extra half-hour for the digital camera--or that you're willing to skip the special effects altogether.
To Your Good Health,
Jenny Thompson
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Submitted by Christine
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W.E.E.P. – The Canadian initiative to stop Wireless Electrical and Electromagnetic Pollution
