Dr. Neil Cherry
(1946 -2003)
Dr. Neil Cherry, held the position of Associate Professor of Environmental Health at Lincoln University, and had a professional scientific background in physics, biophysics, meteorology, Agricultural and Human Biometeorology, renewable energy, energy efficiency and environmental epidemiology.
For more info see: http://www.neilcherry.com
Abstract
A large number of studies have identified significant physical, biological and health effects associated with changes in Solar and Geomagnetic Activity (S-GMA). Variations in solar activity, geomagnetic activity and ionospheric ion/electron concentrations are all mutually highly correlated and strongly linked by geophysical processes. A key scientific question is - what factor is it in the natural environment that causes the observed biological and physical effects? The effects include altered blood pressure and melatonin, increased cancer, reproductive, cardiac and neurological disease and death. Many occupational studies have found that exposure to ELF fields between 16.7 Hz and 50/60 Hz significantly reduces melatonin levels. They are also associated with the same and very similar health effects as the S-GMA effects. The cell membrane has an electric field of the order of 105 V/cm. The ELF brain waves operate at about 10-1 V/cm. Fish, birds, animals and people have been shown to respond to ELF signals that produce tissue electric gradients of ULF/ELF oscillating signals at a threshold of 10-7 to 10-8 V/cm. This involves non-linear resonant absorption of ULF/ELF oscillating signals into systems that use natural ion oscillation signals in the same frequency range. A long-lived, globally available natural ULF/ELF signal, the Schumann Resonance signal, was investigated as the possible plausible biophysical mechanism for the observed S-GMA effects. It is found that the Schumann Resonance signal is extremely highly correlated with S-GMA indices of sunspot number and the KP index. The physical mechanism is the ionospheric D-region ion/electron density that varies with S-GMA and forms the upper boundary of the resonant cavity in which the Schumann Resonance signal is formed. This provides strong support for identifying the Schumann Resonance signals as the S-GMA biophysical mechanism, primarily through a melatonin mechanism. It strongly supports the classification of S-GMA as a natural hazard.
http://www.springerlink.com/content/8v55rmjq469fl3dn/
Environmental Management and Design Division
Lincoln University
New Zealand
neil.cherry@ecan.govt.nz
Dr. Neil Cherry
8th April, 2001
Evidence that Electromagnetic fields from high voltage powerlines and in buildings, are hazardous to human health, especially to young children.
When Physics and Biology meet a clear understanding emerges. When a wise, senior and eminent epidemiologist solves a 50-year old dilemma by matching a mysterious peak of childhood leukemia with the introduction of electric wiring into homes around the world, in many diverse circumstances, a new insight emerges. By joining these understandings with laboratory experimental results and residential and occupational epidemiological studies, a robust, reasonable, consistent and sensible conclusion is reached. Low frequency electromagnetic fields, whose frequencies, harmonics and sub-harmonics coincide with the range of frequencies used by our brains, hearts and cells. Subtly and at extremely low intensities, they strongly interact, through resonant absorption, with primary functions of our bodies with significant elevations in depression, sickness and death.
Authorities around the world treat low frequency electromagnetic fields as foreign external agents that have to be very intense to produce visible and discernible effects such as electric shock and burns. They make the mistake of then assuming that if these extreme acute effects do not occur than any other effects can occur. They then assume that people are safe at all lower field intensities. This approach ignores the basic science of biophysics. Cells use oscillating electromagnetic fields for many vital functions. Signals and substances that interfere with vital functions are hazardous and toxic. Current standards do not protect people from many consistent and well established biological and health effects. The international guideline (International Commission for Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection, ICNIRP (1998)) for public exposure to 50 Hz fields is 1000 mG and for 60 Hz is 833.3mG. These are set to avoid electric shock.
Childhood leukemia is consistently significantly elevated at 2 mG relative to "unexposed" reference groups, RR = 2.0, 95%CI: 1.0-4.1, Feychting et al. (1995) and OR = 12.0, 95%CI: 1.1-137, Dockerty et al. (1998). Common Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (cALL) in 2 to 4 year old children is highly elevated for children in the "unexposed" reference group where mean exposures are somewhat less than 1 mG, Milham and Ossiander (2001). Suicide in electrical workers is elevated by 23% for annual exposures of less than 0.2 mG, Van Wijngaarden et al. (1999). Van Wijngaarden et al. show that the suicide rate increases with mean exposure to an increase of 70 % above 1.1 mG. This shows that the level of no effect is very close to zero for 60 Hz magnetic field exposure. These studies are all linked by a common biological mechanism, reduced melatonin.
www.esdjournal.com/techpapr/elfhealth.pdf
