Many people today are considered to be Electrically Sensitive. This means that any type of exposure to an electromagnetic field (EMF field) begins to produce symptoms. While symptoms vary, the majority of Electrosensitives experience skin rashes, facial flushing, blurred vision, dizziness, tinnitus, fatigue, numbness and tingling in extremities when exposed to an EMF field for any length of time. Many of these people have fled to rural areas and lessened their dependence of technology in hopes of alleviating their symptoms and improving their condition.
While many establishment medical professionals have professed that, in regards to Electrosensitives, ‘it’s all in their heads”, a new study published in 2014 in the Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health has found otherwise.
According to this new study, it’s all in the nerves. The Myelin Sheath to be specific.
The Myelin Sheath is a type of fatty insulating material that surrounds certain nerve cells, It protects the nerve and, more importantly, allows for proper electrical conduction. In this way, the Myelin Sheath allows for impulses to travel efficiently from nerve to nerve. This allows your movements and your senses to work optimally. If electrical conduction in impeded, nerve impulses are stopped in their tracks and sensations can be impaired. Such is the case with a disease such as Multiple Sclerosis. Faulty gait, difficult movements and poor dexterity have caused many unfortunate people to be confined to wheelchairs. Mutliple Sclerosis is a disease characterized by destruction of the Myelin Sheath.
The 2014 study found that exposure to electromagnetic fields has the potential to degrade the Myelin Sheath:
“Myelin integrity is vital to healthy nervous system development and functioning. This review outlines the development of myelin through life, and then considers the evidence for an association between myelin integrity and exposure to low-intensity radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) typical in the modern world.”
The study goes on to compare the similarities in symptoms among Electrosensitives and those suffering from Myelin Sheath destruction.
“…physical symptoms in individuals with functional impairment electrohypersensitivity, many of which are the same as if myelin were affected by RF-EMF exposure, giving rise to symptoms of demyelination.”
Some symptoms of dymyelination are:
- blurriness
- double vision
- loss of hearing
- odd sensations in arms and legs (tingling, numbness)
- weakness in arms and legs
- heat sensitivities
- loss of dexterity
- balance disorders
- difficult gait
- fatigue
- tinnitus
Degradation of the Myelin Sheath has been associated with such diseases as Mutliple Sclerosis, Guillain-Barré Syndrome, and various Neuropathies.
The Journal study concludes:
“Overall, evidence from in vivo and in vitro and epidemiological studies suggests an association between RF-EMF exposure and either myelin deterioration or a direct impact on neuronal conduction, which may account for many electrohypersensitivity symptoms.”
