Photo by Cole Breiland

Speakers discuss health effects of electronics

Stacey Goyan
News Editor

Dr. David Fancy was working at his laptop when he began to notice a pain in his left hand. Initially, he dismissed it as writer’s cramp, and kept working.
Eventually, Dr. Fancy’s hand began to tire sooner and sooner. When the soreness began to be accompanied by chest pains, he realized that something much more serious was taking place. That’s when he realized that he had a condition known as electro-hyper sensitivity.
Topics such as EHS and the health effects of electronic signals such as WiFi and cordless phones was the topic of discussion at Monday night’s panel. Experts, Dr. Henry Lai, Dr. Magda Havas, and Dr. David Fancy spoke in the Agora about the adverse effects of electromagnetic fields on human health.
Dr. Lai, a research professor in University of Washington’s bioengineering department, argued that extremely low frequency radiation can have effects as damaging as Alzheimer’s Disease.
Lai felt that, when reading studies arguing against health risks imposed by WiFi and cell phone radiation, individuals should take into account who is sponsoring the research. Lai’s statistics suggest half of non-industry funded research studies found adverse health effects resulting from extremely low frequency radiation.
Dr. Magda Havas’s presentation looked at “dirty electricity” and its effects on those with a condition known as electro-hyper sensitivity. The symptoms of EHS can include nausea and headaches, and can be as severe as paralysis and psychosis.
To demonstrate whether an area contains dirty electricity, she brought a metre that she used to measure the Agora. The reading showed that the area was “clean.”
According to Havas, WiFi routers, and even the new mandatory smart meters emit radio frequency radiation that can cause adverse health effects in individuals who are sensitive to them.
Havas estimated that a third of the population is sensitive to radio frequency radiation. Her presentation relied heavily on case studies and highly specific examples of electro-hyper sensitivity.
Dr. Fancy, the chair of Brock’s Dramatic Arts department, then addressed the crowd to discuss his experiences of being electro-hypersensitive.
After his symptoms of being electro-hyper sensitive intensified, he could no longer tolerate any radio frequency radiation and was forced to live in a trailer for two years.
Fancy criticized those who view EHS as hypochondria. He argued that the World Health Organization and Health Canada are refusing to acknowledge the significance of EHS. He called those with the condition a “hidden tribe of nomads” looking for exposure free zones and sympathetic doctors.
To prepare for the presentation, university staff searched Lakehead for stray WiFi signals to ensure that the campus was wireless-free. Many networks were shut down including The Study, the bookstore, as well as a computer-to-computer network in the Engineering Student Society office.