Networking & wireless: Wi-fi. Are there any health risks?
Wi-fi. Are there any health risks?
by yannis - 2/21/06 8:59 AMDoes someone know if a wireless router in a bedroom emit radiation (microwaves) that may pose health risks for humans? Should we worry or use wi-fi without any concern? Thank you.
RF health risks
by linkit - 2/21/06 9:34 AM In reply to: Wi-fi. Are there any health risks? by yannisFDA link on radio frequency (RF) radiation:
http://www.fda.gov/cellphones/qa.html
Many have suggested that WiFi Accesspoint
by Melati Hitam - 2/21/06 12:25 PM In reply to: Wi-fi. Are there any health risks? by yannisshould not be place to close to the user, they should atleast 3meters (9ft) away from the user.
No, but...
by drewu - 2/22/06 2:06 PM In reply to: Wi-fi. Are there any health risks? by yannisEven if there was, there isn't much you can do about it aside from moving to a cave. TV/Radio/Cellular/Cordless phones and the other thousands of transmitters wouldn't disappear overnight. If you're still worried, move the AP at least a meter away from you, the power level at 1 meter drops by a power of 10,000.
Pick your cave wisely
by Visualdude - 2/23/06 6:51 AM In reply to: No, but... by drewuMany caves have background radiation as well, from unstable elements (such as uranium and radium) in the rock and soil. Then you also have to worry about things like arsenic and bacteria in your untreated water source.
No Risk Wireless Router in Bedroom: notion is unfounded
by caraj - 2/22/06 10:19 PM In reply to: Wi-fi. Are there any health risks? by yannisThe wireless router offers no danger.
Routers radiate approximately 1 watt.
When you pass a full power AM broadcast station you are being exposed to 50,000 watts.
Many amateur radio hobbyist radiate 1000 watts.
Shipboard environments exceed 1,000,000 pulsed watts.
All decrease at 1/(R x R)[R = the distance from the router], so the further away you are from the antenna (R) the lower the RF intensity.
I haven't included the increase in intensity antennas can create.
The belief that a wireless router's radiation is dangerous is unfounded and entirely false.
I'm not saying its dangerous... just
by Melati Hitam - 2/22/06 10:37 PM In reply to: No Risk Wireless Router in Bedroom: notion is unfounded by carajdon't be too close.. -- would you place your AP close to your head, and use it on daily basis? I don't thing so..---
even TV remote control and electrical outlet, have some effect on you.
Aside from those 'unfounded and entirely false(?)' thing, Your body can reduce the signal strenght..
By the way, unfounded means Not found yet... doesn't mean None.
If I have to choose... I choose further away from the device.
Not 1 watt
by Watzman - 2/23/06 5:50 AM In reply to: No Risk Wireless Router in Bedroom: notion is unfounded by carajThe output of a wifi card or access point is generally a couple hundred milliwatts, which is no where near 1-watt. [Also, 50,000 watts is the maximum for a broadcast radio station (most are 5,000 to 20,000 watts, very few are 50,000) and 1,000 is also the maximum for an amateur radio station, most are more like 200 watts on HF or 1 to 20 watts UHF).
But the point, really, is that an access point or wifi card is considered to be safely low powered and is also at a reasonable distance. Consider a cell phone, which has similar power outputs (a few hundred milliwatts ... a few tenths of a watt). Most are operated less than 2 inches from your head. In my view, regulations and scientific findings not withstanding, that is cause for concern for people who use a cell phone hours and hours per day. But at 3 feet, the exposure to a wifi WAP of the same power is less than one 200th of the exposure from the cell phone at two inches, just due to the distance. And if that number becomes 5 feet, it's one 900th. So distance is your friend here, the power output is low, but once you are even a few feet away, it's the distance, coupled with the low power, that keeps your actual exposure very low. I'd be much more worried about the cell phone that is on your belt holster constantly and 2" from your brain when in use. [Cell phones are transmitting and emitting radiation even when they are not in use, although not continuously].
missing a couple factors
by Visualdude - 2/23/06 6:59 AM In reply to: No Risk Wireless Router in Bedroom: notion is unfounded by carajYou missed the frequency of the energy and the directivity of the antenna.
The technical comment about the distance from the router is what makes the point that a router is not a dangerous thing.
Anyone that uses a cell phone on a regular basis has far more to worry about than a wireless router or cordless phone. I don't think I would sleep with it under my pillow though.
okay your wrong 1 watt routers ya right
by lraff1234 - 1/17/08 8:39 PM In reply to: No Risk Wireless Router in Bedroom: notion is unfounded by carajfirst thing a router does not output a watt of energy more like
100ma 1/10 of a watt. second AM broadcasts are way lower in the spectrum than microwaves. 50 watts in the 2.4ghz or 5.8ghz band can kill you!!!!!
with direct contact within 50 feet in a minute. I install the big drums on radio towers you see driving down the road. Site to site data transfer line of site up to 50 miles. I also install hawking 500ma boosters on routers to extend range by 6 x in home installs
Any thing more than a half watt 500ma needs a fcc license to buy.
Just think your microwave oven works off 600 to 1200 watts power at
2.4 GHz and can cook food in a minute or two. One time when I was installed my first two watt WIFI amp on a 14 story roof I was putting
Up a 25DB gain antenna dish and my co worker hade the amp on and I tasted metal in my mouth at first then got dizzy and almost fell off the roof. Stay away from any amped source over 1GHZ. at 1-? watts The IEEE states
Anything over 1 GHZ is microwave energy 1 watt 2.4ghz 3-6 feet bad headache!!!
Let's get real here
by mail1 - 2/23/06 5:27 AM In reply to: Wi-fi. Are there any health risks? by yannisLet's take a common sense and logical approach here.
We live on a planet orbiting a star system in a galaxy where everywhere there is background radiation. That radiation is in all spectrums, including X-Rays, beta rays, and gamma rays, all of which are deadly if lethal doses are absorbed by living tissue. Even if there was zero technology on this little planet, we would be surrounded by this radiation. So, the real question is "Does the radiation from my wifi router significantly increase the radiation from the Sun and the galaxy?". The answer is not just "No", but "Hell no".
(NT) Well said!
by schooltech - 2/23/06 6:12 AM In reply to: Let's get real here by mail1While the increase in technology on our little floating orb is increasing the radiation exposure of us all, the background radiation is much more intense. Granted, we are adding to the rads we pick up, you are going to die from something!
(NT) are you sure??
by Melati Hitam - 2/23/06 7:31 AM In reply to: Let's get real here by mail1Dangerous radiation
by deenie - 2/23/06 8:17 AM In reply to: (NT) are you sure?? by Melati HitamIn Europe, the cell phones are designed differently, so that the radiation towards the ear is reduced a lot. There are a couple companies, like BioPro and Advanced Tachyon Tech, which sell small round disks that are affixed to the outside of the phone. I have both on my cell phone, as a hedge. Microwave radiation like that from an microwave oven (aka ''radar'' oven) oven are banned in some countries. WRT to radiation coming in from the galaxy, I would think that part of the evolutionary process would've tweaked us to survive while bathed in some kinds of ''natural'' radiation. BTW, we here in the US get corporate science not real science. Real science still openly exists in some countries where politicians listen to their science advisors. Bottom line: cell phones and micros are not as harmless as we're told they are. Some people get the bluetooth headset which works with bluetooth enabled cell phones. This allows you to keep that antenna on the cell phone a few feet away from your head. Also if you must use a microwave oven, always keep some distance between it and yourself, at least six feet. If its door becomes warped, junk it.
Microwave ovens
by unigamer69 - 2/23/06 11:18 AM In reply to: Dangerous radiation by deenieI think I remember reading that in the U.S., the maximum allowed escape of radiation for microwave ovens is 1 watt... this is what you'd be exposed to if you stuck your noggand right by the door.
This is enough - even at a distance - to interfere with low-power communications in the same frequency range, e.g. Wi-Fi @ ~2.4Ghz, Bluetooth in the same range possibly, cordless phones in that range... AFAIK, Wi-Fi operates at anywhere from ~20 milliwatts (mW) at minimum, to the 100 mW legal maximum... to the questionable (but people use them anyway, hehe 
) 500mW amplifiers. I don't know the specs on Bluetooth. Cordless phones generally operate at 100mW or so, except for those which use spread-spectrum, which can run at 1 watt (1000mW).
I doubt even 1 full watt is going to do any harm, esp. for the 90 seconds you're cooking your Hungry Hombre Heat'n'Eat Entree. But... the intensity diminishes the further you are from the microwave, so...
Don't like the so-called "risk?" Stay back from the door!
The guy who said you should trash a microwave with a damaged door though is right. The above stats apply only to new equipment. If the seals are damaged... you can get a lot more radiation coming out, even to the point where it can start to burn you (in the worst cases).
| Forum legend: | |
 |
Locked thread |
 |
Moderator |
 |
CNET staff |
 |
Samsung staff |
 |
Norton Authorized Support team |
 |
AVG staff |
 |
Windows Outreach team |
 |
Dell staff |
 |
Intel staff |
