According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 80 percent of radiation exposure comes from natural sources and 20 percent comes from man-made radiation sources. Amit Lubovsky, vice president of marketing and business development for tawkon, a mobile application that monitors radiation levels, warns that overexposure to radiation can cause many health risks including cardiovascular disruptions, tiredness, irritability, headaches, dizziness, visual problems and trouble sleeping. Here are four sources of radiation in your home and Lubovsky’s tips to minimize your exposure.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 80 percent of radiation exposure comes from natural sources and 20 percent comes from man-made radiation sources. Amit Lubovsky, vice president of marketing and business development for tawkon, a mobile application that monitors radiation levels, warns that overexposure to radiation can cause many health risks including cardiovascular disruptions, tiredness, irritability, headaches, dizziness, visual problems and trouble sleeping. Here are four sources of radiation in your home and Lubovsky’s tips to minimize your exposure.
Microwave
“The FDA limits the amount of radiation that microwaves that can leak from an oven throughout its lifetime to 5 milliwatts (mW) of microwave radiation per square centimeter, at about 2 inches from the oven surface,” says Lubovsky. According to the FDA, the limit is far below the level known to harm people but why take a chance?
Solution: Radiation decreases radically as you move away from its source, so don’t stand in front of a microwave while it’s heating up, suggests Lubovsky.
WiFi and laptops
This is scary! Lubovsky warns that a report published in the Fertility and Sterility Journal by Argentinian scientists details how semen samples from 29 healthy men suffered significant damage when placed underneath a WiFi-connected laptop. “When placed underneath a laptop for four hours, 25 percent of the sperm died and 9 percent showed DNA damage,” she adds.
Solution: Don’t keep your laptop on your lap for extended periods of time. Set it on top of a table or use a lap table to block the radiation.
Mobile phones
The Journal of American Medical Association conducted a study that takes the first look at how electromagnetic radiation from cell phones affects glucose metabolism, a normal function, in the brain. “Though the study shows that radiation emitted after just 50 minutes on a mobile phone increases the activity in brain cells it is not conclusive if it is hazardous to your health,” says Lubovsky. But again, do you want to risk it?
Solution: tawkon is a mobile app that warns you when radiation levels are high so that mobile phone users can switch to a bluetooth.
Television
TVs emit low levels of radiation. However, some scientists say that frequent and long term exposure to low levels of radiation can have effects on human health. And since some people can sit most of the day in front of their TVs, they’re more at risk to overexposure to radiation.
Solution: Limit your exposure and distance from TV.
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