Tahsin Rahman Oshin
Since the 1997 when the Wi-Fi was first used, there has been numerous studies to explore the harmful effects of Wi-Fi. Though it has been found out that there are no fatal effects that we should be concerned about, constant use of Wi-Fi is harming us in ways that we don’t know. The radiation of Wi-Fi can overall affect the health negatively, especially in children. Some of the facts that most of us are oblivious to:
Affects cell growth: Wi-Fi radiation affects cell growth in any kind of organisms. After a group of Danish students found out that they had difficulty concentrating after they woke up with their phones beside their heads, they tested the effects of Wi-Fi radiation on plants. They saw that the plant that was exposed to the most radiation showed less or no growth at all.
Cause of insomnia: Have you ever felt more awake after browsing through your phone at night, even though you were trying to sleep? Studies have shown that exposure to electromagnetic radiation caused changes in brain pattern and induced insomnia in people. Constant bombarding of Wi-Fi pollution can create chronic sleep problems and disrupt sleep cycles.
Reduces brain activity in females: A group containing 30 volunteers of 15 men and 15 women. At first, the group was tested without any Wi-Fi nearby, and nothing was found. Then, the group was exposed to 2.4 GHz of radiation for about 45 minutes. During this time, the brain activity was measured and the women’s brains were found to be most affected. Bad news for the ladies, but guys don’t get too happy either…
Damage to childhood development: Radiation from Wi-Fi and cellular phones can affect cellular development, as we have discussed earlier. However, this is more prominent for fetal development. Also, kidney development is affected by constant exposure, and to such an extent that authors specifically noted that, “This cell property is especially pronounced in growing tissues, that is, in children and youth. Consequently, these population groups would be more susceptible than average to the described effects.” So to put in a nutshell, all kinds of development in babies are affected
Disrupts brain function: Just as some Danish school students had troubles concentrating, scientists have started looking into 4G radiation and its effect on brain activity. People exposed to 4G radiation was found to have several areas of reduced brain activity.
Induces cardiac stress: Experiments show that actual physical responses in people occurred when they were exposed to electromagnetic frequencies. The physical response was heart racing – increased blood pressure, heart beat and increased stress. So radiation can stimulate cardio-vascular diseases in people, especially in older people and those with already a weak heart.
Neutralizes sperm: Previously, it was known that heat reduces sperm production by killing sperms. However, heat is not the only factor that may negatively affect this. Both human and animal studies have shown that electromagnetic radiation can cause DNA fragmentation and reduce sperm motility.
Having stated all the negative effects of Wi-Fi radiation, you would want to take a bit more safety measures as to how you use your router and use your cell phones. Some safety precautions are: prevent keeping phone near your head at night while sleeping; Wi-Fi routers should be kept in remote corners of the house; it is better to switch off your Wi-Fi before sleeping; as children are more susceptible to the dangers of radiation, keep gadgets away from their reach before bed. Taken as a whole, it is advisable to minimize frequent use of EMF-related gadgets overall and be in touch with social life more often.
Tahsin Rahman Oshin is a feature writer at the daily Our Time who has a passion for performing arts and fashion. She is a high school graduate, loves cats and plans to build an animal shelter in future.