> Environmental and Health Concerns > Electromagnetic Fields (EMFs) and Microwaves

Exposed Canadian Breasts at Risk
by author Andrew Michrowski

Canada has the world’s highest extremely low frequency (ELF) magnetic fields in residential areas. This includes the electric power frequency. And we have among the most elevated exposure for cellular phone and mast emissions. Not surprisingly, we also have the world’s greatest incidence of breast cancer.

Breast cancer depends on the ability of the pineal gland to properly secrete the melatonin hormone at bedtime. This hormone is a strong radical scavenger, helpful in fighting cancer. Magnetic fields inhibit melatonin production.

Melatonin suppresses estrogen production by the ovary and prolactin production by the pituitary gland. Melatonin reduction results in increased estrogen and prolactin production, and thereby induces increased turnover of breast epithelial stem cells at risk for malignant transformation. The likelihood that breast stem cells will be affected by cancer-casing agents (such as chemical carcinogens occuring in the environment) is increased by the reduced production of melatonin.

Scientific experiments also have demonstrated the effect of ELF magnetic fields on the target cell activity of melatonin in cultured human breast cancer cells. This suggests that this frequency (and possibly radio frequency/microwave) exposure could have negative effects on how needy cells actually succeed in using melatonin to correctly regulate cell growth and division. Magnetic sensors in cells translate weak fields into biomechanical effects. It also seems that weak fields resonate with living systems to eventually amplify into biological significance.

An Electric History of Cancer

The first observation that the use of electric power accounts in part for higher risks of breast cancer was made in a 1982 study of residential magnetic field exposures of adults. Since then, the 1998 working group US National Institutes of Health report determined that there was some evidence that residential exposure to ELF magnetic fields is carcinogenic. This assessment was based on studies of:

• Women who used electric blankets throughout the night compared with never-users.


• Persons who had lived within 300 metres of Swedish 220 and 400 kV transmission lines.


• An excess of male breast cancer among central office technician telephone employees.


• Breast cancer among men under 65 in electrical occupations.


• Two-fold increases in skin breast cancer observed in exposed men in the electrical trades.


• Significantly elevated risk for male breast cancer in the electrical transport industry.


• Increased risk factors for high occupational 60 Hz electromagnetic field exposure were noted in six thousand, eight hundred cases of breast cancer from cancer registries.

Scientific and government panels consider the two to three-fold increases in risk for breast cancer rates from ELF exposure "low" or "insignificant." This barely acknowledges a doubling of breast cancer rate, which represents 31 percent of all cancers in women. Yet that is just how press releases of publicly-funded research present the case for public consumption.

Would the public accept more visible two-fold increases of deaths from car accidents, plane crashes or twice the number of oil tanker spills?

During the breast cancer healing process, exposure to ELF and radio frequencies should be totally removed. You can measure electromagnetic field levels in your house or workplace with a gauss meter. Exposure management requires better training of electricians (to respect existing electrical codes), better building design–especially in clinics–by architects and builders.

If we collectively reduce long-term electromagnetic exposure to absolutely safe levels, we will observe a like decrease of major diseases such as breast cancer.

Source: alive #207, January 2000