Electromagnetic field exposure and health among RF plastic sealer operators.
Wilen J, Hornsten R, Sandstrom M, Bjerle P, Wiklund U, Stensson O, Lyskov E, Mild KH. · 2004
View Original AbstractWorkers exposed to RF fields averaging 107 V/m showed measurably altered heart rhythms and nerve function, with 24% of machines exceeding safety limits.
Plain English Summary
Swedish researchers studied 35 workers who operate radiofrequency plastic welding machines, measuring their EMF exposure and health compared to 37 unexposed controls. The workers experienced significantly altered heart rhythms (lower heart rate and more episodes of slow heartbeat), along with impaired nerve function and increased reports of fatigue, headaches, and hand warmth sensations. Nearly a quarter of the machines exceeded international safety guidelines for EMF exposure.
Why This Matters
This occupational study provides compelling evidence that radiofrequency EMF exposure affects cardiovascular function in ways that current safety standards don't account for. The workers' average exposure of 107 V/m electric field strength is roughly 10 times higher than what you might experience near a cell tower, yet 24% of the machines still exceeded international guidelines. What makes this research particularly significant is the objective measurement of heart rhythm changes through 24-hour monitoring, not just subjective symptom reports. The finding that higher cumulative exposure correlated with more symptoms suggests a dose-response relationship. This adds to the growing body of evidence that our current EMF safety standards, which only consider heating effects, may be inadequate to protect against the biological effects we're now documenting in real-world exposure scenarios.
Exposure Details
- Electric Field
- 107, 2000 V/m
Exposure Context
This study used 107, 2000 V/m for electric fields:
- 356.7x above the Building Biology guideline of 0.3 V/m
Building Biology guidelines are practitioner-based limits from real-world assessments. BioInitiative Report recommendations are based on peer-reviewed science. Check Your Exposure to compare your own measurements.
Study Details
The aim of the present study was to make an appropriate exposure assessment of RF welding and examine the health status of the operators
In total, 35 RF operators and 37 controls were included. The leakage fields (electric and magnetic f...
The measurements showed that RF operators were exposed to rather intense electric and magnetic field...
A nonsignificant difference between RF operators and controls was found in the prevalence of subjective symptoms, but the time integrated exposure parameters seem to be of importance to the prevalence of some subjective symptoms: fatigue, headaches, and warmth sensations in the hands. Further, RF operators had a significantly lower heart rate (24 h registration) and more episodes of bradycardia compared to controls.
Show BibTeX
@article{j_2004_electromagnetic_field_exposure_and_1432,
author = {Wilen J and Hornsten R and Sandstrom M and Bjerle P and Wiklund U and Stensson O and Lyskov E and Mild KH.},
title = {Electromagnetic field exposure and health among RF plastic sealer operators.},
year = {2004},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14696048/},
}