WiFi is WHAT? A Message From A Mother.

Wifi Is What ?

Message From a Mother About How She Learned About the Health Risks of WiFi.

I have been dealing with a health issue for the past few years and I was told by my doctor to reduce the radiation in my home.  My first thought was what???

I have a very green home and try to make the environment as healthy as possible, but this was new territory for me and something I had never thought about. Wouldn't I know if radiation was a concern in my home.  It took me 6 months to finally call the professional my doctor recommended.  She came to my house and turned her microwave radiation meter on and walked right to my router at my desk which was giving off radiation at sky high numbers.  For years unbeknownst of the danger, I had been working at my computer, right by the router, not knowing that this was the absolute worse place if you want to get as little radiation exposure as possible.  The closer you are to the router the more radiation you receive.  Most WiFi in homes is powerful enough to go through walls, floors, ceilings, even reach our neighbors homes - so why on earth would I want to be sitting right next to the router.

It would be nice if companies like FIOS explained this to customers when they install the equipment. I worked with my provider and wired the computer i use - so that I'm always online but without the radiation.   I have also learned how to turn the WiFi on and off in my home through my computer.  As I learned more about the possible health consequences from the full body exposure you get from WiFi and from the computer sending pulsed radiation out to connect with the WiFi, lowering the radiation in my home is probably the most important step I took for my health.  

Now that I'm aware of the radiation from WiFi, I worry about the WiFi in my children's schools.  There are many, many routers throughout the school, the routers are on all day, and industrial strength.  I worked so hard to provide a safer environment at home, only to have them exposed to radiation throughout the school day.  We do not know the long term effects from too much exposure, we don't even know how much is too much, but we do know that at very low levels there is cell damage, inflammation, trouble focusing and learning. We also know that children absorb radiation in their brains at a much higher rate then adults.  

Several research studies show reproductive, neurological, leukemia, and other cancers. Knowing that there is the potential to do harm, I think we need a precautionary approach and lower the risk as much as possible.  We should not limit technology, but be smart about it.  Turning off WiFi when possible and wiring where we can.  This is easy if we agree that our children are worth it and deserve our protection.  We should do everything we can to help our kids live long and healthy lives.  

-A Concerned Mother,  Montgomery County, Maryland

Learn about the research that concerns parents here. 

Credible Research Shows Wireless is Not Safe

From the EHT Doctor Advice Brochure

The Research is Credible

Parents and teachers are contacting us asking to see "the credible research". There so much research we could share with you,  but perhaps you could start here.

• The US Department of the Interior Letter stating FCC standards are not protective. This letter states that credible research shown fertility impacts at radiation levels thousands below that of a cell phone.  
• Resolution 1815: The Council of Europe issued recommendations calling for reduced wireless for children because of the serious health consequences. 
• Health Endpoints and published Research: A Sample : Read the research here.
• The Vienna Medical Association has issued Guidelines for Patients stating that "Wireless LAN leads to high microwave exposures."
• EHHI Report: Yale Doctors recommend reduced exposure to wireless devices. 
• The BabySafe Project : The Chief of OBGYN at Yale recommends pregnant women reduce Wifi exposure. Watch the Press Conference HERE.
• Download the Full Briefing on Wireless and Schools  This was presented and reviewed with  Superintendent of Education Dr. Lillian M. Lowery's staff  this summer. 
• A list of the International Policy Actions Worldwide to Protect Children. 
• Watch a video of an expert lecture at our National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
• Read an article from San Francisco Medicine: Legal but Lethal
• Read the research that the picture above is based on about children absorbing more radiation than adults. The American Academy of Pediatrics wrote a letter stating children absorb wireless 10 times in the bone marrow of their skull.

As parents we think it is common sense to choose something proven safe. We love technology.  Let's simply connect to the internet with cords, not radiation. Teacher Unions are taking action worldwide to protect their health and the health of the students they love.

Doctors of the World Health Organization are calling for immediate action.  NIH is running a study right now exposing rodents to wireless  at low levels for several hours a day seeing if they get cancer, and DNA damage etc.. . It will be a few years before we get results. Why would we exposure our kids to something being researched on rats?  Our children are not guinea pigs. Lets wait for proof of safety!

We hope this makes sense. We hope this is helpful to you. We simply want the best for our kids.
 If you have research or medical conclusions stating this radiation is "safe" please send it to us.

Press Release: Coalition Formed Concerning Wireless Radiation at Maryland Schools

Coalition Formed Concerning Wireless Radiation at Maryland Schools

Parents state that WiFi networks could pose a health risk to students and staff because of “unsafe" radiation emissions.

PRLog - Feb. 16, 2015 - POTOMAC, Md. -- Local parents, teachers and citizens have formed Safe Tech for Schools Maryland (STSM) to push for "Safe Technology" in schools.  They are raising awareness on the serious health risk that wireless radiation (also known as radio frequency radiation RF-EMF) poses to students and staff. The group advocates for an ethernet based (non-wireless) network that would have zero radiation emissions.

“Children should not be experimented on in school, period.  There are safer , faster, and greener ways to access the internet.  Our conscience and moral compass should be our guide,” stated a parent.

The coalition was founded after a Montgomery County Maryland parent requested a report on the radio frequency radiation levels at her child's school, Bells Mill Elementary.  The radiation levels at the school were high enough to be considered "unsafe" by the Los Angeles School District as well as health advocacy groups who have long argued that FCC guidelines do not protect children.

Safe Tech for Schools Maryland quotes the American Academy of Pediatrics 2013 letter to the FCC calling for stronger radiation guidelines stating that children are “more vulnerable” to wireless radiation and need to be better protected. STSM cites "credible" research showing increased cancer risk, neurological damage and reproductive system damage from low level wireless exposures.

Harvard pediatric neurologist and autism expert Dr. Martha Herbert stated, “EMF/RFR from wifi and cell towers can exert a disorganizing effect on the ability to learn and remember, and can also be destabilizing to immune and metabolic function. This will make it harder for some children to learn, particularly those who are already having problems in the first place.” Dr. Erica Mallery-Blythe, emergency room physician of the Physicians' Health Initiative for Radiation and Environment has recommended “ASAP withdraw all RF Emissions” in her November 2014 scientific presentation on children and RF.

The new group is calling on local school districts and the Maryland Department of Education to turn off the wireless routers and install safe wired routers and ethernet connected computer systems in schools.They note that parents are often surprised to learn that industrial strength routers used in schools are far more powerful than home routers because they are accommodating up to 30 devices in a room. The level of radiation is further elevated from each device emitting radiation.

Maryland school districts have previously responded to parents concerns by stating that radiation levels are “within FCC limits”. However, this group counters that  FCC radiation regulations are 18 years old, under current reassessment and “do not protect children”. The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) a district with over 500,000 students has set safety thresholds at radiation levels 10,000 times lower than FCC standards because of research showing cellular damage at levels lower than the FCC regulations. The radiation levels measured by MCPS at Bells Mill Elementary school were much higher than limits LAUSD set.

Parents who have been addressing this issue in their local schools for the last few years have now connected across the state of Maryland and are taking various actions. For example, parents recently requested  WiFi radiation readings in neighboring Prince George's County but was denied by CEO Dr. Maxwell due to “fiscal constraints” .

Parents testified to the Montgomery County Board of Education on their concerns about wireless networks in schools on October 14, 2014 and February 10, 2015. They also sent MCPS Department of Health Education Supervisor Cara Grant information on safe tech for MCPS curriculum development. Parents have testified several times on the issue to Prince Georges County Public Schools and have provided safety information for PGCPS 2014 Bring Your Own Device Policy.

Parents met with then Governor Martin O'Malley on the issue in October and the State Superintendent of Education Lillian Lowery's Chief of Staff over the summer. In a letter to a parent dated April 23, 2014, Maryland Secretary of Health Joshua Sharfstein M.D. stated that The Department's Environmental Health Bureau reviewed recent scientific reviews. Dr. Sharfstein concluded that, “It is fair to say there are legitimate long term health implications of microwave radiation.”

PTAs and Teacher Unions are calling for removal of WiFi networks because of the radiation.

The coalition made up of parents and citizens from all over the state, started a blog at http://safetechforschoolsmaryland.blogspot.com/

The coalition plans on coordinating local and state efforts to raise awareness to expedite the installation of hard wired (non wireless) technology in schools. 

http://www.prlog.org/12425033-state-coalition-formed-after-radiation-measured-at-maryland-elementary-school.html

Want to read the research? Start here  http://www.bioinitiative.org and here nacst.org

Bells Mill Radiation Levels in Classrooms MCPS Maryland USA

 
Bells Mill  Elementary School Radiation Levels

UNSAFE FOR CHILDREN!

WiFi Radiation levels were measured at several rooms in Bells Mill Elementary by Montgomery County School Staff. The radiation measurements   show:

• The levels in Bells Mill  classrooms were thousands of times higher than radiation levels allowable in the  Los Angeles School District.
• The levels were far higher than what leading experts in the field consider “safe”.
• The radiation levels can damage our children’s immune system, reproductive system and increase their lifetime cancer risk significantly.

Harvard pediatric neurologist and autism expert Dr. Martha Herbert stated, “In fact, there are thousands of papers that have accumulated over decades – and are now accumulating at an accelerating pace – that document adverse health and neurological impacts of EMF/RFR. Children are more vulnerable than adults..." Read the Harvard  letter Here.

UNSAFE Levels

Our children are not lab rats.  They deserve proof of safety before exposure to radiation. 

Q: Why is the radiation high and where does it come from? 
A: The  radiation comes from the wifi access points which are hundreds of times more powerful than home routers. They are "robust" meaning high powered. One of the highest readings was in the room with just one chromebook on. The computers also have radiation emissions. However we are concerned that the radiation in the room with 30 computers on at a time would be far far higher. We want this situation to be measured.  Our kids are in classrooms with dozens of computers on at a time. Each device adds a stream of radiation.  

Fact: PTAs and Teacher Unions are calling for removal of wifi networks because of the radiation.

Q: Can it be fixed?
A: Yes. Just install a technology network that does not emit radiation. Schools around the country are doing it to set a healthier environment. We can do it!

Q: Why are you comparing levels to the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD)?

A: The LAUSD has investigated this issue because wireless radiation (also known as radio frequency radiation) is linked to brain damage and immune system damage. The LAUSD set their own “safety” levels. Why is MCPS not taking similar care for our children's health?

“Since 2007, District staff has utilized a precautionary threshold level that addresses these non-thermal exposures. Our threshold is 0.1 µW/cm2 or 10,000 times lower than the FCC standard. It is believed that a more conservative level is necessary to protect children, who represent a potentially vulnerable and sensitive population.” -Comment by the LA School District on WIFI Radiation.

We ask this question: If FCC levels are so “safe” as MCPS states, then why is LA employing thresholds 10,000 times lower?

Q: What is the Bioinitiative 2012?

A: The Bioinitiative 2012 was written by  29 independent scientists and health experts from around the world about  the health risks of electromagnetic fields. The authors include Harvard trained Dr. David O. Carpenter MD, Director, Institute for Health and the Environment, University at Albany, pediatric neurologist Martha Herbert MD of Harvard Medical School, Prof. Yury Grigoriev, MD, Chairman of the Russian National Committee on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection and Prof. Leif Salford, MD, PhD Chair of Neurosurgery at Lund University Hospital.

“It is essentially an unregulated experiment on childrens’ health and learning. Microwave from wireless tech disrupts thinking – what could be worse for learning?  Technology can be used more safely with wired devices that do not produce these biologically-disruptive levels of microwave radiation” said Cindy Sage, Co-Editor of the BioInitiative Report.

Bells Mills Elementary Radiation Levels

Room #	Radiation Power Density
109	15  μW/cm² the same as 150000 μW/m²
149 with ONE Chromebook on	4.3 μW/cm²  the same as 43000 μW/m²
208 Computer Lab	2.0 μW/cm²   the same as 20000 μW/m²
223	6.3 μW/cm² the same as 63000 μW/m²
125, 214	1.5 μW/cm² the same as 15000 μW/m²
Rooms 132, 10, 14, 18,19	.1 μW/cm² the same as 1000 μW/m²

Radiation levels were recorded at microwatts per centimeter squared. So we converted these measurements to microwatts per meter squared to compare them to recommended standards.

(1 μW/cm² = 10,000 )

Q: What is a Safe Level?

A: No medical organization states this radiation is safe.

Several Groups have proposed recommended public exposure limits. Please see this table.

	Guideline for Wireless Radiation
Los Angeles Unified School District	.1 μW/cm² the same as 1000 μW/m²
Bioinitiative 2012	.0003 to .0006 μW/cm²  is the same as 3 to 6 μW/m²
Salzburg Public Health Department (2002) indoor exposures	.0001 μW/cm²  the same as 1 μW/m²
Natural Background levels (before WIFI) The level humans evolved with for thousands of years.	0.0000000001 μW/cm²  the same as 0.000001 μW/m2 For an excellent chart on this please see http://buildingbiology.ca/ wd/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Wi-Fi-Exposure-Levels-2012.pdf

Q: Is our government doing anything about this?

A: The FCC is reviewing radiation guidelines now and even the Academy of Pediatrics has called for more protective standards. Please read all the official FCC submissions  HERE. Please note that the US never created federal safety standards based on health research.

Q: What can schools do?

A: Turn OFF radiating devices. Use Safe Tech. They can simply install safe ethernet connections for internet access and turn off the wifi routers which emit radiation. It is cheaper to install safe technology. The reason the radiation is so high is because of the industrial strength routers in all the classrooms. Each router puts out a lot of radiation to accommodate the 30 plus devices in each room. School routers are far more powerful than home wifi routers.

Q: What can we parents do?

A: We must talk to our teachers, schools principal and school boards and ask them to install safe technology now! They can simply install safe non radiation emitting internet connections. The cost is worth the benefit. In fact, research shows that over ten years it is cheaper to use wired connections because once it is installed it will last for years. It will not need to be constantly replaced and upgraded as MCPS is doing now. 

Safe Technology is Cheaper and Safer

What Is Not To Love?

Why we must act NOW: Every school with wireless routers probably has similar radiation levels. Worse, these radiation measurements were taken without ALL the computers on. When all the computers are on in a room kids are absorbing radiation from the router plus all 30 devices in the room. This is not safe. 

We parents can do this.  We can ASK for Safe Technology. 

Please sign up for blog updates and to get more information please contact us at safetechforschoolsmaryland@gmail.com


Want to Understand the Research? Read This:
Shallow Minds: How the Internet and Wi–Fi in Schools Can Affect Learning 
by Cindy Lee Russell, MD, VP for Community Health,
 Santa Clara County Medical Association

See the Bells Mill  Report HERE