The prevalence of symptoms attributed to electromagnetic field exposure: a cross-sectional representative survey in Switzerland
Soz Praventivmed. 2006;51(4):202-9.
* Schreier N,
* Huss A,
* Roosli M.
Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Bern, Switzerland.
OBJECTIVES: To investigate health risk perception as well as to assess the prevalence of self-reported symptoms attributed to electromagnetic fields (EMF) and other environmental exposures in the general population of Switzerland. METHODS: Between May and June 2004, telephone interviews of a representative sample of the Swiss population (n=2048, >14 years old) about: (1) health symptoms attributed to five environmental factors (one of which was EMF), (2) health risk perception related to 12 environmental risk factors (five of which were different EMF sources). RESULTS: We found a prevalence of 5% (95% CI 4-6%) for electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS) in our study sample. The most common health complaints among EHS individuals were sleep disorders (43%) and headaches (34%), which were mostly attributed to power lines and mobile phone handsets. In addition, 53 percent (95% CI 51-55%) were worried about adverse health effects from EMF, without attributing their own health symptoms to them. CONCLUSIONS: The large proportion of the population who is concerned or attributes own symptoms to EMF may cause societal conflicts given the ubiquity of EMF in our everyday life.
PMID: 17193782 [PubMed - in process]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=17193782&query_hl=2&itool=pubmed_docsum
* Schreier N,
* Huss A,
* Roosli M.
Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Bern, Switzerland.
OBJECTIVES: To investigate health risk perception as well as to assess the prevalence of self-reported symptoms attributed to electromagnetic fields (EMF) and other environmental exposures in the general population of Switzerland. METHODS: Between May and June 2004, telephone interviews of a representative sample of the Swiss population (n=2048, >14 years old) about: (1) health symptoms attributed to five environmental factors (one of which was EMF), (2) health risk perception related to 12 environmental risk factors (five of which were different EMF sources). RESULTS: We found a prevalence of 5% (95% CI 4-6%) for electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS) in our study sample. The most common health complaints among EHS individuals were sleep disorders (43%) and headaches (34%), which were mostly attributed to power lines and mobile phone handsets. In addition, 53 percent (95% CI 51-55%) were worried about adverse health effects from EMF, without attributing their own health symptoms to them. CONCLUSIONS: The large proportion of the population who is concerned or attributes own symptoms to EMF may cause societal conflicts given the ubiquity of EMF in our everyday life.
PMID: 17193782 [PubMed - in process]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=17193782&query_hl=2&itool=pubmed_docsum
Starmail - 7. Jan, 22:57
