Many people who are considering the use of PEMF therapy to help with a health condition or symptom may have some concerns about using EMFs on their bodies.
Understanding the difference between harmful and helpful forms of electromagnetic energy is crucial to dispelling this myth, and once you understand these distinctions, your worries about using PEMF will disappear.
This guide explores the differences between the various types of EMFs, which are harmful, and which can help restore balance and healing to your body.
If you are worried about using PEMF to treat your medical condition, be sure you read this first to help alleviate your anxieties and learn more about why PEMF therapy is safe for you to use.
We have been exposed to electromagnetic fields since the dawn of man, as these are phenomena that exist naturally in the world and generally present little problem.
However, with the rise in the number and intensity of human-made electromagnetic fields (EMFs), concern over the effects of this energy has grown.
More than ever, our bodies are exposed to artificial sources of electromagnetic energy in ways we previously have never known.
The generation and transmission of electricity, the appliances in your home, the cellphone or laptop you are currently using, and all manner of inventions and technologies emit various intensities and frequencies of EMFs all the time.
Our bodies also emit EMFs from the millions of chemical reactions that occur as a part of our normal cellular function and brain activity.
Your body relies on electrical impulses to send messages across cells and to take in information from the various senses.
Your body is so reliant on these electrical fields that, when they become disrupted or damaged, it dramatically influences your health.
Electromagnetic energy can, at the right frequencies and intensities, be extremely helpful to the body, which we will discuss in more depth in the next section.
However, some magnetic frequencies and waveforms can diminish your body’s natural ability to produce or understand its own signals.
These types of harmful EMFs can cause your cells to dysfunction, die prematurely, or cause other problems that make you more susceptible to injury or disease.
To understand EMFs further, it is helpful to know that all electromagnetic radiation or energy can be divided into one of two categories.
These are based on whether the energy can disrupt the chemical bonds of atoms and cause ionization or not.
These two categories, known as ionizing and non-ionizing, represent the difference between helpful and harmful types of EMFs.
Ionizing EMFS results in specific effects, including heating the cells.
These types of rays, which include gamma rays, x-rays, and UV, are generally high in frequency.
These rays can cause distinct types of damage to the human body, depending on the intensity and duration of exposure.
Non-ionizing EMFs, though, do not possess enough energy to break those chemical bonds within cells, which is why they cannot generate heat and do not cause the type of damage that the ionizing forms can.
Non-ionizing EMFs are able to excite the electrons within a cell and produce a more energetic state, but they cannot break the chemical bonds that are needed to create an ionic state.
Most non-ionizing forms of EMFs are low in frequency.
While much is known about the effects of high-frequency EMFs on the body, less is clearly understood about how mid-range frequencies can influence health as well as what long-term exposure to even low-range frequencies, such as those emitted from your household appliances and electronics, may mean.
More research in this area is needed, but the World Health Organization has concluded from the evidence available that low-frequency EMF exposure does not pose a health risk nor should be a cause for concern for the average person.
Pulsed electromagnetic therapy involves the use of these lower-frequency forms of energy, the type that excite and energize cells but do not generate heat and cause damage.
PEMF devices emit much more frequency EMFs and use waveforms that cannot cause harm to human cells, which is why this form of electromagnetic radiation is safer compared to other types of EMFs.
The low frequencies and reduced intensities of energy emitted by PEMF devices influence the human body and produce biological responses, but these are not the harmful type of x-rays and ultraviolet radiation.
Instead, the energy from PEMF devices can restore electrical charges to dysfunctional and damaged cells, it can improve communication between cells, and it can restore healthy function to cells whose energy has been depleted.
Nearly all PEMF devices that are sold from in-home use are capable of producing only frequencies that are deemed to be Extremely Low or Very Low in their frequency range.
These designations represent the lowest two levels of frequency on the electromagnetic spectrum and are considered to be safe because they cannot induce the heat-generating actions that result in bodily harm.
Most modern PEMF devices are also able to filter and control the spikes and surges that are emitted from household outlets, promising an even exposure to energy that is helpful and healing.
That means you can feel secure that the energy emitted from your device is constant and reliable, and that it will not fluctuate during your treatment sessions.
When introduced to the human body, the low-frequency, low-intensity pulses of energy from a PEMF device can excite the cells of the body enough to restore balance, allow them to repair and rejuvenate, and improve cellular function.
In 1979, research was conducted that found a link between children with cancer and exposure to high-voltage power lines in early childhood.
Those who lived very near to these types of EMFs were at an increased risk of developing leukemia.
Later research confirmed these findings, and since then, more research has been done to determine the nature of EMF exposure to the human body.
Researchers have since noted an increase in various medical conditions in those exposed to harmful electromagnetic fields.
These include increased rates of Alzheimer’s disease, high blood pressure, heart disease, headaches, and various blood disorders.
In all these studies, the types of electromagnetic energy that were shown to cause or be linked to these harmful effects were all from high-frequency, short-wavelength forms of magnetic energy, such as those emitted by extremely high voltage.
These are not the types of energy that are emitted by everyday objects in your home nor by PEMF devices.
Because the spectrum of electromagnetic energy is quite broad, it is misleading to say that all forms of this energy are harmful or helpful.
To quite the contrary, it is only a very narrow span of this spectrum that is used in PEMF therapy, and only this spectrum has been deemed not only safe but therapeutic for the human body.
PEMF treatments are meant to use a magnetic field that is supportive of the body’s natural workings and properties, but the wavelength must also penetrate your body.
These specific requirements mean that a long wavelength with a low frequency must be used.
These are the forms of EMFs that are emitted by PEMF devices.
PEMF devices have an extremely safe track record and have rarely resulted in adverse reactions.
The safety of this form of therapy has been thoroughly studied in the medical community for over three decades, and overwhelmingly the results have indicated that PEMF therapy is not only safe, but it also helps to improve many medical conditions and symptoms.
Even in tests where no primary benefit was shown by using PEMF stimulation, no adverse effects were noted.
One of the most sensitive areas of the body is the brain, and yet PEMF stimulation has been shown to pose minimal risk to this area of the body and can even improve certain neurological conditions, including depression, anxiety, and Alzheimer’s disease.
Long-term studies of intense PEMF therapy, including patients receiving over 70 sessions in one year, show no significant adverse reactions to even intense and prolonged PEMF stimulation.
In even the most extreme situations, patients receiving significant exposure to PEMF stimulation showed no significant side effects of any kind.
While higher-frequency EMFs have been linked to such conditions as cancer, PEMF therapy is actually known to help treat cancer and even shrink tumors in some forms of the disease.
While EMFs are often linked to seizures, PEMF therapy is known to reduce the risk of seizures in many patients.
Based on thousands of medical studies and clinical trials, PEMF therapy is deemed to be safe and as producing no adverse side effects.
The PEMF devices available for home use have safeguards that prevent the use of higher frequency EMFs, and you can safely us PEMF therapy on a wide range of conditions and parts of the body without concern.
While there is enough empirical data to show that PEMF therapy is safe for most people, there are some who should not use this form of treatment or who should use it with caution.
Anyone with an electrical implant, such as a pacemaker, medication, pump, or cochlear implant, should avoid PEMF stimulation in the area surrounding their implant.
Never place a PEMF probe directly over an electrical implant.
The electromagnetic field could disrupt the function of your device and thus result in an adverse outcome for your health.
Other types of metal implants, including joint replacements and metal rods, should not pose a problem, but you can talk with your doctor before using PEMF therapy just to be sure.
There is not enough medical evidence to know who PEMF therapy will affect pregnant women or unborn fetuses and, therefore, this form of treatment is not recommended for women who are pregnant or are trying to become pregnant.
PEMF therapy can be used to treat many different illnesses and conditions.
One of its most effective uses is in the reducing of inflammation and pain, which makes it a useful option for a wide range of conditions.
For conditions of the musculoskeletal system, PEMF therapy has been shown to help with treating fractures, non-union fractures, osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, tendinitis, joint problems, ligament and other soft tissue damage, strains and sprains, back pain, neck pain, rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, and other issues affecting bones, muscles, and joints.
PEMF can also help to treat conditions of the circulatory system, including hypertension (high blood pressure), arrhythmia, angina, arteriosclerosis, poor blood supply, Raynaud’s syndrome, and various lymphatic disorders.
Few therapies are as effective as PEMF at addressing all the major body systems, including the nervous system.
PEMF treatments can help to treat strokes, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, headache and migraines, tinnitus, sleep disorders, sciatica and other nerve pain, neuropathy, carpal tunnel syndrome, multiple sclerosis, depression, anxiety, and hyperactivity.
PEMF therapy can help to treat conditions of the respiratory and digestive systems, as well.
This includes helping to treat diabetes, problems with the liver, pancreas, and colon, Crohn’s disease, bronchitis, pneumonia, and other respiratory diseases like asthma, allergies, and tuberculosis.
PEMF therapy can help to improve the overall function of cells, which means that is can be used to improve the immune system, boost the body’s natural healing process, and repair damaged tissues of all kinds.
Overall, PEMF treatments are deemed to be quite safe for use on the human body.
The electromagnetic energy that is used in this form of therapy is quite different from the higher-frequency EMFs that can cause cancer and other problems.
Knowing the difference between PEMF and EMF energy can help you make the best choices for your health.
Richard Hoover is a PEMF expert and content contributor to PEMF Advisor. With a bachelor’s degree in physics and multiple certifications in natural health programs, he is one of the best PEMF experts around.
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