Research Needs for Establishing a Radio Frequency Electromagnetic Radiation Safety Standard

ABSTRACTThe rapidly expanding use of radar, television, industrial and medical heating units, communication systems, and many other related devices has raised a question concerning radio frequency electromagnetic radiation effects on man. The presence of radio frequency electromagnetic radiation in the environment was negligible prior to World War II. Now, for the first time in evolutionary history, man is being subjected to appreciable levels of this form of radiation. In 1966 the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) published a document entitled, “Safety Level of Electromagnetic Radiation with Respect to Personnel” (see Appendix), establishing an incident power density safety level of 10 mW/cm2from 10 MHz to 100 GHz for periods greater than 0.1 hour. This standard was formulated primarily from research results on tissue heating considerations. The safety level in the USSR and East European countries is 10 µW cm2 based on their research relating to central nervous system (CNS) and behaviorial eff...