As 5G networks have begun to be expanded internationally and in Sweden, speculation has emerged about the health effects of technology. Claims that technology’s high frequencies and demands on larger numbers of transmitters can harm people have circulated. Although radio radiation is not completely harmless, there is not much to worry about as some claim.
New technology with new goals
5G is a new telecom standard that combines improvements in protocol, antenna and frequency technology to increase speeds, reduce response times, improve reliability and expand telecom network capabilities. The idea is that 5G can be used in more applications and in more types of products than before.
Connected cars should be able to communicate with each other and with central systems for future driver-assisted and self-driving cars. Sensors that monitor important infrastructure should avoid physical connections and be able to operate cheaper and with minimal energy requirements.
The objectives of technology are great. In order to make them possible, not only adjustments to the existing telecommunications technology are required but also completely new communication technology. One way that 5G differs from previous technologies such as 3G and 4G is in what frequencies it uses.
There are mainly two types of 5G that operate in two different frequency ranges. Frequency range 1, FR1, has frequencies below 7.1 GHz and Frequency range 2, FR2, has frequencies above 24 GHz. The lower frequency range mainly covers frequencies that have already been used by various communication technologies for several decades. The upper-frequency range is new and used because the higher frequencies can deliver more data in a shorter time and thus be used to offer better connections.
Is 5G dangerous with new frequencies?
It is mainly these higher frequencies that have been questioned as potentially dangerous. For example, some skeptics refer to research showing that brain mass absorbs significantly more energy as the frequency of a radio broadcast increases. A recurring research report from well-respected physicist Bill P. Curry shows just that.
A chart included in one of Curry’s research reports from 2000 clearly shows the relationship between frequency and absorption of energy in the brain. However, there is a big hole in the logic behind the chart. The chart places no importance on the fact that human brains are not on the outside of the body. Namely, electromagnetic radiation loses its ability to be radiated through objects as the frequency increases. Already at 10 GHz, electromagnetic radiation cannot pass through more than 3.43 mm of tissue. At frequencies above 24 GHz used by 5G technology, the radiation is already blocked by the skin.
The greatest known risk of damage from electromagnetic radiation is from the heating of tissues. Electromagnetic radiation can heat human bodies. Radiation at a frequency of 2.45 GHz is used, for example, by microwave ovens to heat food. The relatively high amount of radiation used in microwave ovens is dangerous to humans because it can heat organs to the extent that they can permanently damage them. Even more low-intensity electromagnetic radiation can have such heating effect.
However, all CE-marked smartphones must be less than a limit of 2 W / kg radiation. It is a limit that is 50 times lower than what is considered safe for a human being. Most smartphones have SAR values of around 1 W / kg. It is such a low amount of energy that the human body can cool the potentially heated body parts with its normal blood circulation. This is especially true for internal organs that have relatively large blood circulation.
Master closer to people
A cloud of concern about 5G is the fact that the higher frequencies cannot get through objects and that it requires 5G networks to be built with many more masts. In addition, these masts need to be positioned closer to humans, due to the lack of reach. Masts can be quite harmful in comparison to phones, but only if they are located at the same distance. The exponential radiation reduction that occurs when the distance to a transmitter increases, makes even relatively small distances harmless to masts.
For example, a mast is placed on a roof, directed directly towards an apartment building in. With a meter on the balcony, radiation of 1.7 percent of the reference value could be measured. The radiation, in this case, must, therefore, have been around 58 times higher to reach the reference value. This reference value can, of course, be exceeded with an extremely close placement that completely lacks protection. Antennas that are positioned in such a way that they exceed the reference value are therefore illegal according to the Environmental Code. In addition, the reference value is considered to have a very large safety margin.
There is still relatively little research on the use of such high-frequency radio signals that 5G will partially use. This means that there may be health risks not yet discovered. Undetected risks are also potentially present with more low-frequency signals, but after decades of research on mobile use, no such risks have been identified yet. At present, there are no known direct health risks with 5G, regardless of frequency, as long as the technology is used within its permitted limits.
