The router and wireless devices such as cell phones, cordless phones or Bluetooth speakers generate electromagnetic fields (EMF). It is becoming increasingly difficult to escape from this radiation. WLAN is now even available in supermarkets. It can’t do any harm if the electrosmog is as low as possible, at least in your own four walls.
Although science has not been able to establish a connection between symptoms of illness and electromagnetic fields (EMF) in the past 30 years, according to the Federal Office for Radiation Protection, between one and two percent of Germans describe themselves as electrosensitive. However, electromagnetic hypersensitivity is not classified as a disease either in Germany or by the World Health Organization (WHO).
More and more devices that generate EMF
However, it has been proven that people can perceive electrical and electromagnetic fields, after all we are constantly surrounded by them – also by fields that are of natural origin such as the earth’s magnetic field or electrical fields that we generate ourselves. The following applies to all artificially generated EMF: the lower the load on the body, the better – even if there are limit values for such fields that rule out damage to health.
Electromagnetic fields abound in the apartment or house. In addition to devices that require electricity to operate, this also includes all devices that are wirelessly connected to the WLAN or in some other way. (e.g. via Bluetooth, DECT or LTE). And there are more and more of them: cordless phones are now being joined by televisions, vacuum robots, Bluetooth speakers, baby monitors, remote-controlled roller shutters, smart heating systems, etc.
1.) Turn off devices when not in use
Sure: Devices that don’t spark and don’t draw electricity don’t radiate. So consider turning off some devices that aren’t needed in certain situations. An example: At night you can activate airplane mode on your smartphone. Functions such as the alarm clock or audio playback, for example for a downloaded audio book, continue to work.
In order to reduce the electrosmog from current-operated devices, you can use mains circuit breakers, as known from power strips. The circuit breaker is installed by the electrician in the fuse box. The switch separates the mains voltage for entire rooms. As soon as a device is activated in one of the separate rooms, electricity flows again automatically.
The only problem with the mains switch: it does not work with devices that are in standby mode or that require constant power. The mains switch does not work for the room in which the WLAN router is connected to the power supply.
2.) Reduce transmission power
You can reduce the WLAN radiation in other ways. Instead of having the router transmit around the clock, the WLAN can be deactivated on most devices for a freely selectable period of time, for example between midnight and six in the morning. The router will automatically turn the WiFi off and on again.
Many routers also offer the function of reducing the transmission power. This allows you to focus the WiFi signal on specific rooms and skip the bedroom, for example.
3.) Smartphones, signal strength and cabling
However, a minimum signal strength is not always an advantage. For example, if cell phone reception is poor, the smartphone has to increase its transmission power. Therefore, only use your cell phone if there is a sufficiently strong network.
Basically, cabling causes less electromagnetic radiation than radio transmission. The PC in the home office should therefore be connected to the router via LAN or Powerline (Internet via the power cabling). Take a look at the shielding of the cables: the better the shielding, the less electrosmog.
Also interesting: What you need to know about the SAR value of mobile phones
4.) Beware of the DECT standard
Of course, it doesn’t work entirely without radio. Therefore, when buying a cordless telephone or a baby monitor, for example, pay attention to how signals are transmitted wirelessly or whether you can reduce the transmission power.
The DECT standard, which is mainly used for cordless phones, usually has a higher transmission power than a smartphone. The base station of a DECT telephone should therefore only transmit when you are actually making a call. Find a baby monitor that does not constantly transmit signals via DECT. It also doesn’t hurt if the baby monitor is certified with the “Blue Angel”.
5.) Keep your distance
The further away the source of an electromagnetic field is, the lower its radiation. A baby monitor should be placed about one to two meters away from the bed. Use a headset when you make calls with your smartphone – of course one with a cable, otherwise you have an additional EMF close to your body with the Bluetooth transmission between the headset and the smartphone.