Carpenter David O, Sage Cindy
Institute for Health and the Environment, University at Albany, Rensselaer, NY 12144, USA.
Rev Environ Health. 2008 Apr-Jun;23(2):91-117. doi: 10.1515/reveh.2008.23.2.91.
Electromagnetic fields (EMF) permeate our environment, coming both from such natural sources as the sun and from manmade sources like electricity, communication technologies and medical devices. Although life on earth would not be possible without sunlight, increasing evidence indicates that exposures to the magnetic fields associated with electricity and to communication frequencies associated with radio, television, WiFi technology, and mobile cellular phones pose significant hazards to human health. The evidence is strongest for leukemia from electricity-frequency fields and for brain tumors from communication-frequency fields, yet evidence is emerging for an association with other diseases as well, including neurodegenerative diseases. Some uncertainty remains as to the mechanism(s) responsible for these biological effects, and as to which components of the fields are of greatest importance. Nevertheless, regardless of whether the associations are causal, the strengths of the associations are sufficiently strong that in the opinion of the authors, taking action to reduce exposures is imperative, especially for the fetus and children. Inaction is not compatible with the Precautionary Principle, as enunciated by the Rio Declaration. Because of ubiquitous exposure, the rapidly expanding development of new EMF technologies and the long latency for the development of such serious diseases as brain cancers, the failure to take immediate action risks epidemics of potentially fatal diseases in the future.
电磁场（EMF）充斥着我们的环境，其来源既有太阳等自然源，也有电力、通信技术和医疗设备等人为源。虽然没有阳光地球上就不可能有生命，但越来越多的证据表明，接触与电相关的磁场以及与无线电、电视、WiFi技术和移动手机相关的通信频率会对人类健康构成重大危害。关于工频电场导致白血病以及通信频率场导致脑肿瘤的证据最为确凿，不过，与包括神经退行性疾病在内的其他疾病之间存在关联的证据也在不断涌现。对于造成这些生物效应的机制以及场的哪些成分最为重要，仍存在一些不确定性。然而，无论这些关联是否具有因果关系，其关联强度都足够大，以至于作者认为，采取行动减少接触势在必行，尤其是对胎儿和儿童而言。不作为不符合《里约宣言》所阐明的预防原则。由于接触无处不在、新的电磁场技术迅速发展以及诸如脑癌等严重疾病的发病潜伏期较长，不立即采取行动可能会在未来引发潜在致命疾病的流行。
