Cell
Tower Removed From Schoolyard Due to Cluster of Cancer Cases
Written by Dr. Joseph Mercola Fact Checked
- April 16, 2019
Story at-a-glance
A cluster of cancer cases among young children at Weston Elementary School in Ripon, California, led to the shutdown and planned relocation of a Sprint cell tower
The FCC revised its rules relating to the rollout of 5G technology in September 2018, limiting cities’ rights to control the placement of 5G antennas
Los Angeles and other cities sued to overturn the FCC’s new rules, but January 10, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit sided with the FCC, which means citizens will not be able to prevent installation of 5G cell bases outside their homes
5G technology relies primarily on the bandwidth of the millimeter wave (MMW), which is primarily between 30 gigahertz (GHz) and 300GHz, known to penetrate 1 to 2 millimeters of human skin tissue
MMW has been linked to a number of potential health problems, including eye damage, impacted heart rate variability (an indicator of stress), arrhythmias, pain, suppressed immune function, and depressed growth and increased antibiotic resistance in bacteria
A cluster of cancer cases among young children at Weston
Elementary School in Ripon, California, has reignited the conversation about
whether electromagnetic field (EMF) radiation from cell towers might be a
contributing factor.1 In 2016, at the age of 10, Kyle Prime was diagnosed with
kidney cancer. Five months later, his classmate, Mason Ferrulli, was diagnosed
with brain cancer.
This year, two more children at the school have received
cancer diagnoses. Three teachers have also been diagnosed with various forms of
cancer since 2016, along with two preschool-age children that live near the
school, and a former student, who was diagnosed with brain cancer at the age of
22.2,3
The parents of Prime and Ferrulli believe the Sprint
cellphone tower located on campus might have played a role, even though tests
reveal it's functioning normally and emitting radiation below the government
standard.
"It is classified as a possible carcinogen.4 That
tells us that there is some evidence out there. We're not naive to the fact
that there could be other components out there — other environmental
influences… but the bottom line that we feel in regards to this tower is it
doesn't belong there... if there's any indications that its unsafe,"
Monica Ferrulli told CBS News.5
Cellphone Radiation Safety
Guidelines Are Outdated
Indeed, for those of you who are familiar with the health
effects of EMFs and the way the government safety standards are set, such
results are little proof of safety.
As noted by Joel Moskowitz, director of the Center for
Family and Community Health at UC Berkeley (an area that has taken a stricter
stance on EMF awareness and safety), the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's
(FCC) "guidelines for cellphone radiation adopted in 1996 are outdated and
were mostly based on work done by industry-paid scientists."6
Fortunately, while Sprint adamantly denies any possibility
of harm to the community, the company has turned the tower off and says it will
move the tower to another location. On the downside, any respite the area might
get from this action is likely to be temporary, as the nationwide rollout of 5G
draws near.7
5G Rollout Will Exponentially
Increase EMF Exposures
Whether EMF can cause serious adverse effects is a question
that is only going to grow stronger over time, especially in light of the 5G rollout. As noted in the The Modesto Bee:8
"Ripon and many other cities are preparing for the
wireless industry's conversion to 5G technology, designed to provide highspeed
Internet service for smartphones. The rollout involves the installation of
hundreds, if not thousands, of 'small cell' devices that will expose people to
radiofrequency waves in cities.
Because the 5G technology for wireless carriers will use
'millimeter' waves that travel short distances, around 200 small cell antennas
may be needed in a city of Ripon's size, while the estimate for San Jose is
more than 4,000."
What's worse, the FCC revised its rules relating to the rollout of 5G technology in September 2018, limiting cities' rights to control the placement of 5G antennas. Los Angeles and other cities sued to overturn the FCC's new rules, but January 10, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit sided with the FCC.9 In an email to Governining.com, Brian Namey, a spokesperson for the National Association of Counties, said:10
"We are concerned that the FCC's ruling overlooks
community decision-making and significantly impedes counties' ability to ensure
public safety and well-being. We share the FCC's goal of expanding broadband
access for every American; however, a one-size-fits-all approach will not
achieve that goal."
What You Need to Know About
5G
Unlike the 4G technology currently in use, which relies on
90-foot cell towers with about a dozen antenna ports on each, the 5G system
uses "small cell" facilities or bases, each with about 100 antenna
ports.11 These cell
bases will be mounted to already existing infrastructure such as utility poles.
Ultimately, many if not most homeowners can expect to end up
with a 5G cell base mounted right outside or very near their home. Workplaces
and educational institutions will also be saturated with MMWs.
Once installed in your neighborhood, you won't have a choice
to opt out of continuous 5G exposure, and research compiled by EMF coach and
author Lloyd Burrell12 and others13,14 suggests
the proliferation of 5G could turn into nothing short of a public health
disaster.
Seeing how many are already struggling with electromagnetic hypersensitivity, saturating
cities and suburban areas with MMW radiation will undoubtedly worsen their
plight, and add many new sufferers.
5G (5th Generation) technology relies primarily on the
bandwidth of the millimeter wave (MMW), which is primarily between 30 gigahertz
(GHz) and 300GHz.15 The MMW is known to penetrate 1 to 2 millimeters of human
skin tissue16,17 and has been linked to a number of potential health
problems, including:18,19,20,21,22
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Eye problems such as lens opacity in rats, which is linked
to the production of cataracts,23 and eye
damage in rabbits24,25
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Impacted heart rate variability, an indicator of stress,
in rats26,27,28 and heart
rate changes (arrhythmias) in frogs29,30
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Pain31 — MMW is actually what's used in crowd control weapons
(Active Denial Systems) by the U.S. Department of Defense, as it has the
ability to cause a severe burning sensation32
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Suppressed immune function33
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Depressed growth and increased antibiotic resistance in
bacteria34
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Doctors and Scientists Warn
of 5G Hazards and Urge Caution
While MMWs have not been widely used before, it's already
been suggested that sweat ducts in human skin act as antennae when they come in
contact with MMWs.35 In a 2016 letter to the FCC, Dr. Yael Stein of the Hadassah
Medical Center in Jerusalem, Israel, who has studied 5G MMW technology and its
interaction with the human body, writes:36
"Computer simulations have demonstrated that sweat
glands concentrate sub-terahertz waves in human skin. Humans could sense these
waves as heat. The use of sub-terahertz (millimeter wave) communications
technology (cellphones, Wi-Fi, antennas) could cause humans to percept physical
pain via nociceptors.
Potentially, if G5 Wi-Fi is spread in the public domain we
may expect more of the health effects currently seen with RF/ microwave
frequencies including many more cases of hypersensitivity (EHS), as well as
many new complaints of physical pain and a yet unknown variety of neurologic
disturbances.
It will be possible to show a causal relationship between G5
technology and these specific health effects. The affected individuals may be
eligible for compensation … Respected members of the FCC and U.S. Senate
Committees, please protect Public Health and vote against exposure of the
public to harmful G5 technology."
In 2015, 247 scientists engaged in the study of biological
and health effects of nonionizing EMFs across the world signed an international
appeal to the United Nations,37 calling for
protection from nonionizing EMF exposure due to evidence of health effects even
at low levels.
Two years later, in 2017, more than 180 doctors and
scientists from 35 countries signed a petition38 to enact a
moratorium on the rollout of 5G due to the potential risks to wildlife and
human health.
20 Facts About 5G
In this video, Paul Ben Ishai, Ph.D., a senior lecturer with
the department of physics at Ariel University in Israel, reviews the potential
risks to human health from sub-MM communication systems. The Environmental
Health Trust has also published a list39 of 20 facts
you need to know about 5G wireless. These include:
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5G coverage requires "small cell" antennas to be
placed in neighborhoods everywhere.
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Millions of small cells must be built into people's front
yards.
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The radiation from 5G small cells is not minor, and will
increase EMF radiation near homes, causing aesthetic
deterioration of the environment in addition to health risks.
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5G will not replace current wireless technology but add to it, increasing
exposure exponentially.
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Community authority is being overruled at every level of
government in the name of boosting cellphone coverage and internet speeds.
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Cellphone companies have confirmed that 5G small cells
will work at a distance of 3,000 feet and do not need to be placed every 100
feet, necessitating them being placed near homes.
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Scientists worldwide are calling for a halt to the rollout
of 5G.
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Cumulative daily radiation exposure is associated with
serious health effects, including cancer,40,41 altered
brain development in children and reproductive damage in men.
Indeed, thousands of studies showing biological effects
from low-intensity EMF, including over 1,800 referenced in the report’s
conclusion, were summarized in the BioInitiative Report42 (2007 and
2012), demonstrating immune system effects, neurological effects, cognitive
effects and much more.
Another important study,43 funded by
the U.S. government, was published in the Journal of the American Medical
Association in 2011.
Using a positron emission tomography or PET scan capable
of detecting alterations in glucose, the researchers determined that
cellphone radiation triggers your brain cells to metabolize glucose at an
increased rate.
Glucose metabolism equates to cell activation, so the
findings indicate that radiation from your cellphone has a well-defined
measureable influence on your brain. Essentially, each time you put a
cellphone up to your ear, you're artificially activating your brain cells.
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Multiple papers have concluded wireless radiation is a
human carcinogen; the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified
cellphones as a Group 2B "possible carcinogen" in 2011,44 and two
recent studies (one by the U.S. National Toxicology Program (NTP)45 and one
by the Ramazzini Institute in Italy46) confirm
its carcinogenic potential.
The NTP study found heart tumors (malignant schwannomas)
in male rats, "similar to acoustic neuromas, a benign tumor in people
involving the nerve that connects the ear to the brain, which some studies
have linked to cellphone use."
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According to experts, 5G small cell wireless streaming
bills do not make financial sense.
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Antennas near homes also decrease property values.
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Microwave antennas in front yards pose several worker and
public safety hazards.
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Wireless companies warn investors of risks, but do not
inform people living near cellphone towers.
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Antennas near homes will cause a deterioration of sleep
for the occupants, resulting in decreased performance and health.
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Cellphone radiation has been shown to have an adverse
impact on birds, bees, trees and plants.
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Many U.S. cities and entire countries are voting to halt
5G.
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The Federal Communications Commission does not monitor
radiation exposures from cell installations and many cell towers already
violate radiation limits.
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The International Association of Firefighters officially
oppose cell towers on fire stations, and have done so since 2004, after
research showed firefighters with antennas on their stations suffered
neurological damage, including memory problems, intermittent confusion and
feelings of weakness.47
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The American Academy of Pediatrics and many other medical
organizations are calling for federal action to protect children from EMF
exposures, citing research showing that living near mobile phone base
stations is associated with an increased risk for headaches, memory problems,
dizziness, depression and sleep disturbances.
Research48 by Martin
Pall, Ph.D., published in 2016 detail how, when VGCCs are activated in the
brain, they release neurotransmitters and neuroendocrine hormones. Hence,
consequences of chronic EMF exposure to the brain also include anxiety,
depression, autism and Alzheimer's.
Preliminary results from the largest long-term study49,50,51 of brain
development and youth health in the U.S., the Adolescent Brain Cognitive
Development (ABCD) Study,52 also reveals the brains of the most prolific users of electronic devices look different compared to
those who use smartphones, tablets and video games less frequently.
Children who use electronic devices for seven hours or
more each day have premature thinning of the brain cortex, the outer brain
layer that processes information from the five physical senses (taste, touch,
sight, smell and sound). As little as two hours of screen time per day may
impact cognition, resulting in lower scores on thinking and language tests.
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Fiber optic connections is the solution and the safe alternative
to boost internet speed and reliability.
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Learn More About the Health
Risks of 5G
You can download a two-page fact sheet53 on 5G from
the Environmental Health Trust. On their website, you can also access a long
list of published scientific studies showing cause for concern.54
In "5G Wireless Telecommunications Expansion: Public
Health and Environmental Implications," published in Environmental
Research in August 2018, Dr. Cindy Russell, executive director of Physicians
for Safe Technology,55 writes:56
"Like other common toxic exposures, the effects of
radio frequency electromagnetic radiation (RF EMR) will be problematic if not
impossible to sort out epidemiologically as there no longer remains an
unexposed control group.
This is especially important considering these effects are
likely magnified by synergistic toxic exposures and other common health risk
behaviors. Effects can also be nonlinear.
Because this is the first generation to have cradle-to-grave
life span exposure to this level of man-made microwave (RF EMR)
radiofrequencies, it will be years or decades before the true health
consequences are known. Precaution in the roll out of this new technology is
strongly indicated."
Health Effects of EMF
Exposure in General
Even without the addition of 5G, most people are already
living in a proverbial sea of microwave radiation, and there's ample evidence
suggesting this unnatural level of exposure is harming our health. For example,
research has shown EMFs from cellphones, laptops, tablets, Wi-Fi, smart meters, baby monitors and other wireless
devices:57
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Create excess oxidative stress — EMFs
activate voltage gated calcium channels located in the outer membrane of your
cells.58,59,60,61,62 Once
activated, the VGCCs allow an abnormal influx of calcium ions into the cell.
The excess calcium triggers a chemical cascade that results in the creation
of peroxynitrite, extremely potent oxidant stressors believed to be a root
cause for many of today's chronic diseases.
Inside your body, peroxynitrite modifies tyrosine
molecules in proteins to create a new substance, nitrotyrosine and nitration
of structural protein.63 Changes from nitration are visible in human biopsy of
atherosclerosis, myocardial ischemia, inflammatory bowel disease, amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis and septic lung disease.64 Over
time, the cellular and mitochondrial damage being generated can set the stage
and contribute to any number of health problems, including cancer.
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Open the blood-brain barrier, allowing
toxins to enter your brain.
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Fragment DNA — Studies have shown EMFs cause DNA
fragmentation. Significant oxidative stress from peroxynitrites may also
result in single-strand breaks of DNA.65
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Damage mitochondria, and impair proton flow and ATP
production — The enzyme ATP synthase — which passes currents of
protons through a water channel, similar to current passing through a wire —
generates energy in the form ATP from ADP, using this flow of protons.
Magnetic fields can change the transparency of the water
channel to protons, thereby reducing the current. As a result, you get less
ATP, which can have system wide consequences, from promoting chronic disease
and infertility to lowering intelligence.
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Alter cellular function due to excessive charge — In a
previous interview, Alasdair Philips, founder of the Powerwatch,66 explained
how EMF exposure alters cellular function by way of
excessive charges. Essentially, the cell functions as a gel, held together by
electric charge. When the charge becomes excessive due to a massive influx of
electrons, the function of the cell is disrupted.
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Raise the risk for abnormal cell growth and cancer,
including leukemia and cancer of the brain, acoustic nerve, salivary gland,
eyes, testes, thyroid and breast — As early as 2011, the evidence
was strong enough for the International Agency for Research on Cancer, the
cancer research arm of the World Health Organization, to declare cellphones a
Group 2B "possible carcinogen."67
Since then, a number of studies have found support for EMF
having carcinogenic potential, including two recent studies by the National
Toxicology Program (NTP, an interagency research program under the auspices
of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences),68,69,70 which
found clear evidence for heart tumors in male rats exposed to 2G and 3G
cellphone radiation.
Corroborating evidence has been published by the Ramazzini
Institute. The Ramazzini study71
reproduced and clearly supports the NTP's findings, showing a clear link
between cellphone radiation and Schwann cell tumors (schwannomas)72,73,74 — but at
a much lower power level than that used by NTP.
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Has neurological effects — Studies
dating back to the 1950s and '60s show the nervous system is the organ most
sensitive to EMFs. Some of these studies show massive changes in the
structure of neurons, including cell death and synaptic dysfunction.
Consequences of chronic EMF exposure to the brain include anxiety,
depression, autism and Alzheimer's disease, which Martin Pall, Ph.D.,
details in a 2016 paper.75
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Contributes to reproductive problems in both sexes — For
example, prenatal exposure to magnetic fields can nearly triple a pregnant
woman's risk of miscarriage.76 Several
other studies have come to similar conclusions.77,78,79,80,81 In men,
studies show EMF radiation from cellphones and laptops
reduces sperm motility and viability,82,83 and
increases sperm DNA fragmentation.84
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Alters your microbiome, turning
what might otherwise be beneficial microbes pathogenic. This too can have
far-ranging health effects, since we now know your microbiome plays an
important role in health.
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Remedial Strategies to Lower
EMF Exposure
Below are several suggestions that will help reduce your EMF
exposure. You can also find guidance and solutions for mitigating electric and
magnetic fields at the end of "Healthy Wiring Practices,"85 a document
created by building biologist Oram Miller, whom I've interviewed on this topic.
In this document, he also discusses specific workarounds for various devices,
including cellphones, MacBooks, Roku and Apple TV.
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Nighttime remediation
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Use filters to remove voltage transients from your
electricity and use meters to confirm that they are in a safe range.
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Use a battery-powered alarm clock, ideally one without any
light. I use a talking clock for the visually impaired.86
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Consider moving your baby's bed into your room instead of
using a wireless baby monitor. Alternatively, use a hard-wired monitor.
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If you must use Wi-Fi, shut it off when not in use,
especially at night when you are sleeping. Ideally, work toward hard-wiring
your house so you can eliminate Wi-Fi altogether. It's important to realize
that if you have a Wi-Fi router, you have a cellphone tower inside your home.
Ideally, you'd eliminate your Wi-Fi and simply use a wired
connection. If you absolutely must have a router, you can place it inside a
shielded bag when not in use. You can find shielded items online, or make
your own using Swiss Shield fabric. If you have a notebook without any
Ethernet ports, a USB Ethernet adapter will allow you to connect to the
internet with a wired connection.
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For more extensive shielding, you can consider painting
your bedroom walls and ceiling with special shielding paint, which will block
RF from outside sources, such as cell towers, smart meters and radio/TV
towers. Windows can be covered with metal window screen or film. For your
bed, consider a shielding bed canopy.
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Daytime strategies to reduce unnecessary EMF exposure
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To reduce EMF exposure during the daytime, consider using
Stetzer filters to decrease the level of dirty electricity or electromagnetic
interference being generated. You can also take these with you to work or
when you travel. This may be the single best strategy to reduce the damage
from EMF exposure since it appears that most of it is generated by the
frequencies that the filters remove.
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Connect your desktop computer to the internet via a wired
Ethernet connection and be sure to put your desktop in airplane mode. Also
avoid wireless keyboards, trackballs, mice, game systems, printers and
portable house phones. Opt for the wired versions.
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Avoid carrying your cellphone on your body unless in
airplane mode and never sleep with it in your bedroom unless it is in
airplane mode. Even in airplane mode it can emit signals, which is why I put
my phone in a Faraday bag.87
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When using your cellphone, use the speaker phone and hold
the phone at least 3 feet away from you. Seek to radically decrease your time
on the cellphone. I typically use my cellphone less than 30 minutes a month,
and mostly when traveling. Instead, use VoIP software phones that you can use
while connected to the internet via a wired connection, or better yet, use a
landline telephone.
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General household remediation
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If you still use a microwave oven, consider replacing it
with a steam convection oven, which will heat your food as quickly and far
more safely.
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Avoid using "smart" appliances and thermostats
that depend on wireless signaling. This would include all new
"smart" TVs. They are called smart because they emit a Wi-Fi signal
and, unlike your computer, you cannot shut the Wi-Fi signal off. Consider
using a large computer monitor as your TV instead, as they don't emit Wi-Fi.
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Replace CFL bulbs with incandescent bulbs. Ideally remove
all fluorescent lights from your house. Not only do they emit unhealthy
light, but more importantly, they will actually transfer current to your body
just being close to the bulbs.
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Dimmer switches are a source of dirty electricity, so
consider installing regular on/off switches rather than dimmer switches.
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Refuse smart meters as long as you can, or add a shield to
an existing smart meter, some of which have been shown to reduce radiation by
98 to 99 percent.88
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