Could electronic radiation make you ill?

Feeling a bit under the weather and can't work out what's causing it? Electromagnetic radiation from mobile phones, plasma screen televisions and computers could be the cause

Most of us own a large variety of electronic equipment, mainly because it makes life so much easier. Your laptop allows you to work and surf from home, your mobile means you're never out of touch, your cordless phone allows you to multi-task and a baby monitor lets you constantly check on your little one.

But have you ever stopped to think about all the invisible electromagnetic radiation, or 'electrosmog', resulting from the use of both wireless technology and mains electricity? Probably not, but a small group of people are convinced electromagnetic fields (EMFs) are the cause of their health problems.

Health practitioner Sue Donnelly, mum to William (both pictured above), began to have problems sleeping and suffered from frequent headaches. William suddenly became very hyperactive.

She says: 'I was beside myself with exhaustion, and confused as to what was happening to me when, as we drove down a road we don't often use, my son shouted out "mummy there's a huge new mast". It was on the college building about 400-500m from our house. It had been erected with no warning whatsoever from the council or the mobile phone company.

'This of course explained all my symptoms. I had previously checked my area and house with an Electrosmog Detector (a device that buzzes with static when it encounters electronic radiation) and there had been absolutely nothing affecting my house. We went home, and now the Electrosmog Detector was alive with the sounds of these new signals. I asked the council when the mast had been turned on and, of course, it was exactly the day William first became hyperactive and couldn't sleep.'

Sue continues: 'I have now taken the necessary steps to protect my son and my home and I'm lucky that at the moment this is the only mast near enough to affect us. I used shielding materials in the bedrooms and, practicing what I preach, we are taking the correct nutritional supplements. If we detect more signals in the future, I would consider getting a Schumann Frequency Generator (a magnetic pulse generator that mimics the earth's frequency - electrosmog drowns this natural frequency out) for the whole house, and shielded bed canopies (like mosquito nets) in order to ensure a good night's sleep.'

Sue's reaction may sound a little extreme, but electrosmog is thought to be responsible for a condition known as electrosensitivity (ES) or electrohypersensitivity (EHS). The symptoms include headaches, disruptive sleep patterns, chronic fatigue, depression, epilepsy, skin complaints and disruptive behavioural patterns in children. It is thought to affect between three and ten per cent of the world's population.