Q. I feel really sick when I go into stores with lots of electrical equipment (TVs, stereos, etc.). I can’t wait to get out and sometimes feel achy for hours afterward. Is it possible to be allergic to electricity?
A. In the sense that physicians define allergy, which is acknowledged to be a narrow definition, you really cannot be allergic to electricity. A true allergy must involve the reaction of a specific molecule with Immunoglobin E to release histamine. However, if you broaden the definition to include words such as idiosyncratic response or hypersensitivity, which can make you feel just as bad, it appears there are people who are “allergic” to electricity.
Variously known as electromagnetic hypersensitivity, electrosensitivity, and several other terms, electrical sensitivity appears to be a physiological disorder with symptoms directly brought on by exposure to electromagnetic fields. The human race has always existed in the presence of an EMF from the sun, but now our many electrical devices substantially increase it. It appears that this millionfold increase in our exposure to electromagnetic fields, generated from scores of sources such as fluorescent lights, electric motors, and Video Display Terminals, is catching up with us. A Swedish study published in the March 23, 2001, edition of Medscape General Medicine, an online peer-reviewed medical journal, reported on a trial of antioxidant supplements for electrical sensitivity. Although antioxidant therapy did not reduce the severity of the symptoms, the researchers did accept that electrical sensitivity symptoms are not entirely psychological.
Those suffering from ES often receive little support from our society, and the mainstream medical establishment typically views individuals with ES as candidates for psychiatric evaluation. ES is lumped in with a number of other environmental illnesses, such as sick-building syndrome and multiple chemical sensitivity, with symptoms following exposure that are similar and include headache, dizziness, nausea, weakness, fatigue, pain in joints and muscles, ringing in ears, difficulty breathing, abdominal pain, and irregular heartbeat.
Interest in the effects of EMF on the brain began in the 1930s in Europe and the USSR, predating TV and computer use. They described symptoms of overexposure to electromagnetic fields in terms similar to those used today. ES has been accepted in Sweden more than in any other country, largely due to the activities of Sweden’s Association for the Electrically and VDT Injured (FEB). The FEB produces and distributes educational literature that has helped people throughout the world to become aware of the phenomenon of ES. In the U.S., the Electrical Sensitivity Network (PO Box 4146, Prescott, AZ 86302) is dedicated to the networking of ES sufferers.
There is currently no consensus on the safe limits of EMF exposure. There are ongoing studies of cardiovascular reactions in relation to mobile phone use and a controlled study of changes in perception thresholds in persons who report symptoms related to exposure to electricity.
Our bodies function through a host of subtle electrochemical messages that we barely understand. While we recognize the immense benefit that electricity has provided for society, it is quite arrogant to assert that we really understand how we interact with this aspect of our environment.
This article appears in January 10 • 2003.