By Randall Brink
RVs are more than just an increasingly popular way for people to travel and explore the great outdoors. While these vehicles provide a convenient and comfortable way to travel, they also present some potential health risks from exposure to radiofrequency (RF) radiation. In this article, we’re going to look at what RF radiation is, the potential health risks it presents, and how you can minimize your exposure while RVing.
What is RF radiation?
RF radiation is a type of electromagnetic radiation that is emitted by devices that use wireless technology, such as cell phones, Wi-Fi routers, and Bluetooth devices. This type of radiation is present in the air and can penetrate building materials, including the walls and roof of your RV.
Potential health risks
There is some concern about the potential health risks of prolonged exposure to RF radiation. Some studies have linked exposure to RF radiation with a higher risk of cancer, particularly brain tumors, and other adverse health effects, such as headaches, fatigue, and decreased fertility. However, the evidence is not yet conclusive, and more research is needed to determine the exact impact of RF radiation on human health.
Minimizing your exposure
Despite the uncertainty surrounding the health effects of RF radiation, there are steps you can take to minimize your exposure while traveling in an RV. Here are some tips:
- Limit your use of cell phones, Wi-Fi routers, and other wireless devices. This can help reduce your exposure to RF radiation. If you must use these devices, try to limit your exposure by using them for shorter periods of time and keeping them at a distance from your body.
- Use an RF meter to measure the levels of RF radiation in your RV. This can help you identify sources of RF radiation and take steps to reduce your exposure.
- Consider installing RF-blocking materials, such as RF-blocking curtains or RF-blocking paint, in your RV. These materials can help reduce the amount of RF radiation that enters your RV and reduce your exposure.
- Turn off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth when not in use. This can help reduce the amount of RF radiation emitted by these devices.
- Unplug electronics when not in use. Many electronics, including televisions and laptops, emit RF radiation even when turned off. Unplugging these devices can help reduce your exposure to RF radiation.
Guidelines for acceptable levels of RF exposure
Here are some guidelines that AlphaLab, Inc., maker of the TriField TF2 EMF meter, provides for acceptable levels (meter readings) of exposure:
Absolute safe levels have not been established. However, according to our research, there have not been problems associated with staying below 3mG Standard Magnetic or 5mG Weighted Magnetic.; 50V/m Standard or Weighted Electric; 0.20 mW/m2 RF (field measurement) or 1.000 mW/m2 (peak measurement).
While the health risks associated with exposure to RF radiation are not yet fully understood, there are steps you can (and probably should) take to minimize your exposure while traveling in an RV. By limiting your use of wireless devices, using an RF meter, installing RF-blocking materials, turning off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and unplugging electronics when not in use, you can reduce your exposure to RF radiation and protect your health and that of your pets while enjoying the RV travel life.
Related
From American Cancer Society: Radiofrequency (RF) Radiation
##RVT1091
Radiation, of many types, is a fact of life. You can apply this article not just to your RV but also to your home and your workplace.
ManyThanks, prof Randall for having the guts to post this! This ol’mechanic & family have suffered for years with Headaches, Vertigo,Tinnitus,SinusProblems,
Vertigo, Nausea, Leg Cramps, Respiratory Problems,&Thyroid Disorders…all of which were ameliorated by reducing EMF exposure …as for ‘ the evidence is not yet conclusive,and more research is needed’
that’s just smoke&mirrots…way back in 2002!, when there were few cellphones around,
the World Health Organization (WHO) classified EMFs as “group 2 carcinogenic: a possible carcinogen [ cancer.gov/ about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/ radiation/electromagnetic-fields-fact-sheet ] We’ve been had! cheers
If the master’s of the universe at the WHO says it then it must be so.
The head lines should have been written “Are you aware of the radiofrequency (RF) radiation levels of your surroundings”
Nice concept, but pointless unless everyone around you does it too. Might as well ask everyone to not litter.
Ha! good one…
First, all the sources mentioned are non-ionizing radiation. This relates to the frequency of the radio frequency (RF) source. X-rays are at ionizing frequencies, radio transmitters (WiFi routers, Bluetooth transceivers, cell phones) are not. Ionizing radiation is energetic enough to cause DNA mutations; non-ionizing radiation is not (full stop). That’s physics, folks.
Second, the field power levels of all common RF sources are orders of magnitude below sources like radar (which some studies have looked at), except for cell phones held to the head. Obviously, use of a cell phone is not specific to RVing.
Finally cell phone correlation with head cancers has been EXHAUSTIVELY studied for several decades with 0 statistically valid evidence of a correlation between cancer and cell phone use. Please read the American Cancer Society article linked by the author, as well as the cell phone article linked in that article (here).
Relax and enjoy your RV and forget you read this article.
Agree wholeheartedly! No need for more FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt).
A quick tip about cell phone radiation: The closer you are to the cell tower, the lower the output of your phone puts out.
Why you discarded my comment I don’t know, I didn’t say anything derogatory or do yo have a red flag on my name?
Bob P, the RF in the air must have wiped out your comment.. Joke, lol,.
Hi, Bob. No, your comment was not discarded. I’ve been moderating comments today and haven’t discarded any of yours. I looked in the Spam and Trash folders, and no one else discarded any of your comments either, so I don’t know where it might have gone. Maybe you clicked on the wrong button when you were done writing it? And there is no red flag on your name. Have a good afternoon/evening. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
Hmm, … I heard in the distant (~20, 25 years ago) past that cell phones had undesirable aspects, but did not understand exactly what. Thank you for clarifying for me as well as explaining it is the wireless aspect that is the culprit. Unfortunately, Amazon’s prices for RF measurement devices currently dissuade me from purchasing. I may regret that. I certainly will rethink it if/when unsafe RF levels are better established. Thank you!
I have been hearing for the last 50+ years that such and such is bad and will cause cancer and kill you. OK, Karen, I am old and will die, let the Lord’s will be done
What we call radio frequencies (RF) are oscillations/vibrations of electromagnetic forces. The unit of measurement is a hertz or cycles per second I’m not sure we know the slowest cycle, but it is commonly agreed that gamma rays are the fastest. In between we have everything including all the broadcast frequencies, microwaves, Infrared light (think IR remote controls), visible light, ultraviolet light, x-rays. We are thoroughly bombarded daily by RF from natural sources. RF in and of itself is not a threat.
Just like a sunburn, the threat is from intensity and duration. Intensity is controlled by distance from the transmitter, and of course, duration by time. If you use a cellphone, you can increase distance by either using the speakerphone or a wired headset. I think you can figure out how to decrease duration. IR devices are typically momentary and intermittent use. Other than a microwave oven, residential microwave devices are very low power. Limit your time next to transmitters.
As someone who has spent 50+ years in radio communications working with RF, I’d be more worried about RF energy if I lived in a city, especially a high-rise apartment. Look at the top of any high building and you will see that the roof is covered with cell phone antennas. Cellphones themselves are extremely low power and therefore require the installation of many cell sites in close proximity.
The tallest buildings typically have TV & broadcast antennas on top who’s power range from 10,000 watts to several million.
When I am in my motorhome, we are typically far from RF transmitter sites. My RV has very little RF sources compared to my home or anywhere in a city.
The inverse square law is your friend! The only precaution I take is always stand at least a couple of feet from a running microwave in case it leaks. Cateracts from nearby radar or other high powered transmitters is a long established risk, and a microwave oven outputs THE select frequency that heats water-containing (and other molecules) material.
I sit around in my bricks and sticks bathed in RF from consumer goods and wiring (60Hz exposure, ohhhh nooo!). The only difference in my motorhome is slightly shorter distance. I suppose I should run out and get a gross of aluminum foil and cover my walls, like brother Chuck in Better Call Saul! Maybe make a tinfoil hat to protect my brain too! Please! Don’t tell them about the natural background cosmic radiation from space and radon emission in many places from the ground! Can you tell im not worried about it?
Radio frequencies are electromagnetic waves (NON ionizing radiation) which do not have enough energy to ionize atoms from materials and therefore cannot harm the human body.
The non-ionizing stuff talked about here is pretty debunked as BS, but that tri-field meter is dandy for hunting ghosts around the campfire… 😀 Just no seances next to my camper, please, as I have enough gremlins already…
Eloquent comment. I agree completely.
Not only THAT, but 5G will soon turn us all into mind controlled zombies!!!
RF levels are no more and might even be less in an RV due to fewer appliances as opposed to your brick and mortar house in the city. This article insinuates a greater risk which is misleading.
If you are worried about RF, I’m surprised that you didn’t mention induction cooktops.
I’m not smart enough to understand the science of RF, but it seems to me that the more “smart” phones in this world, the dumber the world gets.
👍👍
The smart phones have taken most of the intelligence out of the population as seen in daily non interactions between people and even with the crippled socialized population when there is an effort to interact on even the most basic level. The art of conversation and social interaction has been destroyed in at least 1 generation
I am glad that you mentioned that “Absolute safe levels have not been established.” I believe that RF radiation levels below microwave frequencies have not been proven to cause problems in humans. Many of my friends and I spent years working near RF from radio and TV station transmitters, along with their associated RF emitters and devices. We seem to be doing ok in our old age.
I worked for the Army as a civilian for 33 years and was around RF radiation and hazardous chemicals. Have no cancer in my family and I ended up with cancer. Many others who worked there also got cancer, many died. It’s all in your DNA whether RF will affect you.
This reads like the AI written articles y’all have been writing about.
Trust me, Roger. (Yeah, I know. You don’t know me. When my son would say that I’d know he was definitely up to no good. 😆 ) Randall is a human being with real, not artificial, intelligence. He puts a lot of time and effort into researching and writing his articles. Have a good night. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
You see this wording whenever you read any article in a health food or other “natural products” magazine. Lots of “may cause” for the bad stuff and “may provide” for the good stuff. None of it is proven. And our life expectancy keeps going up – and when it doesn’t, the cause is more likely to be obesity and a sedentary lifestyle than RF.
Sorry if I “triggered” anyone…
Agreed. I’m really surprised that this kooky content appears as a legitimate concern on the newsletter
I followed the link to the page where you could buy one of those meters for about $180. It would be a fun toy – if it didn’t cost so much. Walking around with this thing, measuring all this stuff can scare you needlessly. I’m more of an “Alfred E. Neuman” kind of guy. And now that I’m a ham operator I hate to see what that meter would show in my shack!
That was my reaction, too, Tommy. $180 is a bit in excess of my elective spending limit. Loved your reference to Mad magazine’s poster boy. It spurred me to ultimately find this interesting article that you might enjoy (he said hopefully, having read little of it so far 🤔): https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2016/03/03/a-boy-with-no-birthday-turns-sixty/ . Thanks and safe travels, Tommy! 🙂
Thanks for the link, Neal. I read part of it, then abandoned it. Too much. As an aside, when I was young, I had both the first issue and the second issue of Mad Magazine. Wish I still had them now!
You’re welcome, Tommy. 🙂 I haven’t quite gotten to the end yet either. Did find it interesting as to how far back into the past essentially the same likeness that Mad used for Alfred E. Neuman went. Sorry you no longer have those two issues. 🙁 I kinda know the feeling, having bought on eBay Sports Illustrateds that got thrown away or given away decades ago. 🙁 Safe travels! 🙂
Sorry, Diane. 🙁 I changed “was” to “is,” hence it needing a second approval. 🙁
No problem at all, Neal.👍 It just takes a second, literally. Have a good evening/night. 😀 –Diane
The sky is falling, the sky is falling
(Chicken little)
with all the RF n the world you can’t escape it