KT -
news.telegraph.co.uk
"Kitchen appliances linked to miscarriage
By Robert Uhlig, Technology Correspondent
(Filed: 10/01/2002)
STRONG magnetic fields produced by trains and household appliances such as vacuum cleaners and food mixers increase the risk of miscarriage by up to three times, according to a new study.
The National Radiological Protection Board - Britain's advisory body on radiation - said the American study needed to be taken seriously, although further work was needed. "If true, there would have to be precautionary advice to pregnant women," said a spokesman.
Dr De-Kun Li, of the Kaiser Foundation Research Institute at Oakland, California, asked 1,063 women in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy to wear a device on their waists that measured magnetic field levels every 10 seconds.
He found that pregnant women exposed to peak radiation levels greater than 1.6 microteslas - 100 times less than permitted by NRPB guidelines - were nearly twice as likely to miscarry, New Scientist reported. Those who experienced high peak fields were three times as likely to miscarry.
Dr Li said this second finding was another confirmation that the increase in miscarriages "was due to electromagnetic fields". The team did not examine which appliances were producing the strong fields, but devices with powerful motors are known to be the worst culprits.
Vacuum cleaners and drills emit around 20 microteslas - more than 12 times higher than the critical level in the study. Food mixers give off around 10. Radiation within 70ft of a 400,000 volt pylon as used by the National Grid is eight microteslas.
Dr Li speculated that high levels of radiation might cause miscarriages by subtly disrupting cell-to-cell communication."
Regards, Don |
