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Note: This study found no significant biological effects under its experimental conditions. We include all studies for scientific completeness.

Symptoms & Sensitivity

EHS subjects do not perceive RF EMF emitted from smart phones better than non-EHS subjects.

No Effects Found

Kwon MK, Kim SK, Koo JM, Choi JY, Kim DW. · 2012

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People with electromagnetic hypersensitivity cannot detect cell phone radiation any better than others, suggesting symptoms aren't due to enhanced EMF perception.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers tested whether people who report electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS) could actually detect cell phone radiation better than those without the condition. In a double-blind study, 37 participants were exposed to real and fake cell phone signals at levels similar to normal phone use, but neither group could reliably tell when the radiation was present. The findings suggest that EHS symptoms may not be directly caused by the ability to physically sense electromagnetic fields.

Exposure Information

A logarithmic frequency spectrum from 10 Hz to 100 GHz showing where this study's 1.95 GHz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 1.95 GHzPower lines50/60 Hz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

The study examined exposure from: 1950 MHz Duration: 32 minutes

Study Details

In this double-blind study, two volunteer groups of 17 EHS and 20 non-EHS subjects were investigated in regards to their perception of RF-EMFs with real and sham exposure sessions.

Experiments were conducted using a WCDMA module inside a dummy phone with an average power of 24 dBm...

In conclusion, there was no indication that EHS subjects perceive RF-EMFs better than non-EHS subjects.

Cite This Study
Kwon MK, Kim SK, Koo JM, Choi JY, Kim DW. (2012). EHS subjects do not perceive RF EMF emitted from smart phones better than non-EHS subjects. Conf Proc IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2012:2190-193, 2012.
Show BibTeX
@article{mk_2012_ehs_subjects_do_not_3165,
  author = {Kwon MK and Kim SK and Koo JM and Choi JY and Kim DW.},
  title = {EHS subjects do not perceive RF EMF emitted from smart phones better than non-EHS subjects.},
  year = {2012},
  
  url = {https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/6346396},
}

Quick Questions About This Study

No, a 2012 double-blind study found that people with electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS) could not detect 1950 MHz cell phone radiation any better than people without the condition. Neither group could reliably tell when the radiation was present during testing.
Research shows electromagnetic hypersensitivity does not improve detection of smartphone EMF signals. A controlled study using 1950 MHz radiation found that EHS subjects performed no better than non-EHS subjects at identifying when cell phone radiation was actually present.
EHS symptoms are likely not caused by physically sensing electromagnetic fields. A 2012 study demonstrated that people reporting electromagnetic hypersensitivity cannot actually detect 1950 MHz cell phone radiation better than those without symptoms, suggesting other mechanisms are involved.
Electromagnetic sensitive people cannot identify real versus fake phone signals any better than non-sensitive individuals. In double-blind testing with 1950 MHz radiation at normal phone use levels, both groups failed to reliably distinguish actual radiation from sham exposure.
Electromagnetic hypersensitive subjects do not have enhanced RF field perception abilities. Research using 37 participants exposed to 1950 MHz radiation found no indication that EHS subjects perceive radiofrequency electromagnetic fields better than people without the condition.