Do not build under power lines!

A young man who had barely managed to take off his diapers, but already with a “mobile”, or a granny, in whose shopping bag a cell phone stumbles, no one is surprised today. The sign of time, its attribute, as familiar and indispensable as a computer, television, electric shield in the hallway. All this creates an electromagnetic background, completely invisible and inaudible. How environmentally friendly is it?

Science does not know, but warns ...

Some scare us with cancer, sexual impotence, dementia and miscarriages. Others reassure - it's okay, they even treat magnetic fields! In general, all poison and all medicine, only a dose makes it this or that, as the ancient Aesculapius said. The experts of the Research Institute of Occupational Medicine of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences and the Center for Electromagnetic Safety at the Institute of Biophysics of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation took up the establishment of this "dose". To make it clearer: all devices consuming electricity, except for electric fields, also create magnetic ones.

These are high-voltage and cable lines, switchboards, transformers and wires of power supply systems, trolley buses and trams, subways and commuter trains, household appliances included in the socket ...

And if there are no problems with electric fields, they have been studied for a long time and can be easily shielded (there are enough obstacles in the form of a reinforced concrete wall or a metal grid), says the deputy director of the Center Evgenia Bicheldey, while science knows little about the biological effect of magnetic fields, and it’s technically safe to defend against them very difficult and expensive. A person without special devices is not able to recognize their presence - he does not have such a sensory organ. Although science has established that magnetic fields can adversely affect living organisms. But as far as they are potentially dangerous, no one can give a definite answer.

No one in Russia has seriously dealt with this problem. The Moscow government, interested in ensuring safe living conditions for Muscovites, decided to develop such a standard in a single city. The Department of Science and Industrial Policy instructed the Center for Electromagnetic Safety, which won the competition, to conduct special studies to establish a standard governing the magnetic field of industrial frequency of 50 Hertz (Hz) for residential premises.

Current "walks" even through pipes

As usual, laboratory animals served as biological objects for scientific research. For six months they were exposed to magnetic fields. Animals behaved as if nothing had happened, multiplied and multiplied. And only rat immunity began to fail. Moreover, as the tests showed, even after the termination of the tests, the changes persisted. As a result, a standard for the population was established - the EMF created by the power supply system should not exceed 5 microtesl (μT). In real life, it is rare. Most often, values ​​not higher than 1 μT are recorded.

“This is a tougher standard than in many countries,” says Yuri Grigoryev, MD, professor. - We suggest introducing it into all sanitary-building norms and rules. Our recommendations are under consideration in the Moscow government. They will become a guide to action when a document appears that makes additions to SNiP.

In the meantime, people living in apartments located directly above transformer substations are at potential risk. At some such facilities, the Center’s specialists record the roll-over of the magnetic “dose”. In recent years, fashion has returned - to build substations in the basements of residential buildings. For reasons of economy, expensive Moscow land, of course. In the current SNiPs there is no direct ban on such construction.Nevertheless, in Moscow there are about four hundred houses where the level of the magnetic field is exceeded.

The danger is also too close - less than 50 meters - proximity to power lines. In the capital, there are entire neighborhoods built along power lines. By the way, the author of these lines lives in one of these houses. Problems arise also from the proximity of electrical panels, from which no wall protects. Hidden sources, such as “unknown” cables, are no less dangerous, because it is not known where exactly they go. In addition, due to errors during installation and improper operation of power supply systems, leakage currents occur that freely walk around gas and water pipes, metal structures inside walls and heating radiators.

According to specialists of the Center, pipes and metal structures of most Moscow buildings are charged with such “walking” currents. They create a magnetic field, due to which the picture on the screen of a computer video monitor starts to tremble. By the way, a jumping, floating, generally distorted image on the display is the surest and only way to “register” an increased level of the magnetic field by ourselves, without special equipment. About 40% of metropolitan offices face the problem of image distortion on the monitor screen. The old power supply system was not ready to receive modern technology.

The most reliable way to get rid of leakage currents with their magnetic field is to bring the building's power supply system in proper form, in accordance with Russian standards. True, it is expensive. But a properly organized power supply system is also fire safety.

Do not turn into loonies!

In everyday life, we are also immersed in an environment of invisible and inaudible electromagnetic waves emitted by stoves, televisions, refrigerators, air conditioners, mixers and hair dryers, which also operate at an industrial frequency of 50 Hz.

Recently, the World Health Organization has classified magnetic fields as a possible carcinogen. True, coffee belongs to the same class. How many buckets of this drink do you need to drink in order to gain a harmful dose? So with a hairdryer, iron or electric razor. Of course, there are people who are especially sensitive to electromagnetic fields. There are 1.5–4 percent of them. They, according to E. Bichelday, react to ordinary levels electromagnetic radiation, on the background that the "normal" citizens do not feel. They develop depression, headaches, a burning sensation and tingling sensations on the skin. Metropolitan "hyperas" are most often diagnosed with a "psycho" and try to treat for obsessive conditions. Since it is very difficult to establish that the cause of the ailment is precisely the electromagnetic field.

Now the sale is full of all kinds of remedies against all of the above, on which the whole business thrives. Including screens and neutralizers, which supposedly help to electromagnetize your environment and generally protect from any harmful radiation. All this is complete nonsense, experts say. However, your business. If you want, believe it. Sometimes it helps - the placebo effect, the dummy, is triggered. Everything is better than cycling on the basis of a “demonic” apartment, really making a sore for yourself.

If you are worried about any “suspicious” objects in your or neighboring house, you can share your concerns, consult with the experts of the Center for Electromagnetic Safety by calling 193-01-87.