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Your Digital Devices Could Be Zapping Your Energy — 4 Easy Ways to Avoid It

As many as 2 in 3 women are sensitive to EMFs, says Ann Gittleman, PhD

Getting directions, checking in with friends and family, scrolling through social media posts, unwinding with a game of Wordle… Americans spend an average of 4 hours and 25 minutes on their cellphones daily. And while we count on our phones to make our lives easier, experts warn the electromagnetic frequencies (EMFs) they emit can make it tougher to get through the day. In fact, EMFs trigger fatigue, brain fog, insomnia and more for millions of us, says functional health expert Jill Carnahan, MD. Just ask Tina Janke, who experienced exhaustion, foggy thinking and other draining symptoms due to EMF sensitivity. But a few simple steps helped her conquer the condition and reclaim her health and vitality.

What are EMFs?

EMFs are electric and magnetic forces produced by electromagnetic radiation. And while electrical appliances and power lines are well-known sources of high frequency EMFs, devices such as microwaves, WI-FI routers, cordless phones and cell phones emit a type of EMFs known as radiofrequency EMFs (RF-EMFs). Exposure from phones can be particularly high. A study in the journal Environmental Research notes that when cell phones are held close to the head, tissues absorb up to 80% of radiation from the devices.  

Related: Too Much Screen Time? Rubber Band Trick Makes It Easy to Put Your Phone Down

How EMF sensitivity triggers tiredness  

As many as two in three women have some degree of EMF sensitivity, asserts nutritionist Ann Louise Gittleman, PhD, New York Times bestselling author of more than 35 books, including Zapped. This condition, marked by fatigue, pain and brain fog, is brought on by extensive exposure to the electromagnetic radiation emitted by electronic devices. And women over age 50 are at greater risk. Indeed, findings in the journal Epidemiology suggest EMFs can worsen the hormonal changes of menopause. But EMF’s drain energy and health in other ways, including the following:

EMFs impair cell function

“EMFs not only interfere with the electrical impulses cells use to communicate, they also create unstable molecules that damage cells,” explains Gittleman. Indeed, researchers reporting in the journal Mutation Research determined exposure to EMFs induced DNA damage in cells. Also of concern: Chronic exposure to EMFs blocks cellular detox. “The waves oscillate at frequencies that communicate with your cells,” says Diana Hoppe ,MD, who treats EMF sensitivity. “Your body recognizes these forces as foreign and defends against them by making cell membranes harder and less permeable.” The result? “Toxins can’t get out — and energizing nutrients can’t get in.”   

EMFs deplete the thyroid

“The thyroid is super-sensitive to radiation,” notes Gittleman. And putting your cell phone to your ear exposes the thyroid, which is located in your neck, to EMFs. In fact, one study found spending more than 2 hours a day talking on a cellphone increased markers of slow thyroid function by 39%

EMFs sap magnesium levels

EMFs emitted by cell phones raise the risk of health-sapping magnesium shortfalls. How? “EMFs are stressors, and stress depletes the body’s stores of the mineral,” says Carolyn Dean, MD, author of The Magnesium Miracle. That’s a problem since magnesium is key to the function of the HPA axis, a stress-regulating system, as well as to cells’ ability to generate energy in the form of ATP. 

Are you suffering from EMF sensitivity?

Many products that claim to measure EMF levels don’t work, asserts EMF expert Magda Havas, PhD. And while doctors can conduct tests to ID excess inflammation, low thyroid function and other concerns associated with EMF sensitivity, such problems can be due to other causes.  Fortunately, taking stock of the following symptoms can help you determine if EMFs are undermining your health:

  • Fatigue
  • Brain fog
  • Headaches
  • Dizziness
  • Skin rashes 
  • Muscle pain
  • Nausea
  • Heart palpitations
  • Anxiety
  • Insomnia

How to overcome EMF sensitivity

It’s impossible to avoid EMFs entirely, especially in today’s tech-driven society. The good news: Taking the steps below can outsmart EMF sensitivity and allow you to safely use EMF-emitting devices.

Related: Top Docs: Blue Light Emitted By Electronic Devices Is Making Women Tired — 4 Ways to Reduce the Risk

Relocate your router

Keeping Wi-Fi routers out of your bedroom or simply turning them off at night can slash EMF exposure during the hours you’re sleeping. That’s important, says Dr. Hoppe because the brain is most sensitive to EMF disruption at night. And if you charge your cellphone overnight, do it outside your bedroom. The reason: Findings in the journal Radiation Protection Dosimetry reveal EMFs impair production of melatonin, the hormone that helps the body slip into restorative sleep. “

That’s worrisome, because the brain clears itself of toxins during sleep, and impairments can lead to brain fog,” says Gittleman. “Plus, melatonin has an antioxidant action that defends cells against EMF damage.” If you do keep your phone in your room, she advises placing your phone at least six feet from your bed and switching it to airplane mode. That blunts the device’s ability to send and receive electromagnetic signals.

Related: Too ‘Wired and Tired’ To Fall Asleep? MDs Explain Why It Happens — And the Easy Fixes

Carry your phone this way

Holding your phone one inch from your ear when you talk cuts EMF exposure by up to 90%, according to researchers at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. Havas also recommends keeping your phone in your purse instead of carrying it on your body, and setting it to airplane mode with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth off unless you need them.

Change the way you use your phone in the car

cell phone in a car with maps on: EMF sensitivity
svetikd/Getty Images

Many of us use our phones to get directions when we drive. The problem: “The phone has to work harder to get a signal through the metal vehicle, so it produces more EMFs and more reach you,” cautions Dr. Hoppe. Her advice: “Use the phone’s speaker rather than routing it through Bluetooth devices, which emit additional EMFs.”   

Related: Eye Doc: Look *Here* While You Drive + 8 More Genius Tips to Improve Night Visiol

Increase your magnesium intake

Dr. Dean advises asking your doctor for a blood test to check your magnesium levels. If they’re low, consuming 600 mg. daily—a dose that will help improve your resilience to EMFs. Top sources of magnesium include pumpkin seeds (156 mg per ounce) , chia seeds, (111 mg per ounce), quinoa (118 mg per cup) and black beans (120 mg per cup). Prefer to supplement? Dr. Dean advises taking 600 mg. to 900 mg. a day of liquid magnesium chloride. According to a study in the journal Magnesium Research, magnesium chloride is a form of the mineral that’s readily used by the body

Related: Discover The Best Magnesium for Sleep and Wake Up Happy!

EMF sensitivity success story: Tina Janke, 63

Tina Janke, who overcame EMF sensitivity
Pam Danielle,

“Sorry, but I can’t make it.” Tina Janke once again found herself uttering the dreaded words to one of her best friends as she canceled plans to meet her for dinner. “I was too exhausted to do anything but go home and crawl into bed,” Tina recalls. “She was kind and said she understood, but I couldn’t shake the guilt and disappointment. ‘I’m sorry’ had become my mantra as my debilitating fatigue kept me from enjoying time with friends. I felt so isolated and alone.

Tina was tired all the time

“The excessive exhaustion I’d been battling since the 1990s made it nearly impossible to get through a day of work without nodding off at my desk. It also left me without the energy reserves for anything extracurricular. At first, I pushed through and forced myself to stay awake. As the owner of a public relations firm, my clients expected me to be awake and not nod off in the middle of a meeting! Plus, I had a staff to manage. Admittedly, the exhaustion was puzzling because there were times when my energy was high. But as I aged, the fatigue left me so depleted, it started to threaten my livelihood. I was constantly in a fog, barely functioning personally or professionally.

Things got worse before they got better

“I started getting debilitating migraines accompanied by nausea. Once, I tried to push through and go to a friend’s for dinner, but minutes after leaving my house, I had to pull over into a parking lot. The blinding pain and nausea were so unbearable that it was unsafe to drive.


“Initially my friends were supportive, but over time they started to think I was being antisocial, making up excuses to not go out. And I couldn’t blame them! Even with all of the blood tests and physicals, my doctor couldn’t find any reason for my symptoms. He suggested I see a therapist. So I started to think it was all in my head, and my anguish turned into depression. I knew I shouldn’t be this tired!

An answer at last

“In 2014, working with a new client changed my life. The owner of the company told me he had electromagnetic sensitivity, which meant he experienced headaches, fatigue, confusion, dizziness and other symptoms when he was exposed to modems, TVs, computers, monitors, cellphones, Wi-Fi and other electrical sources. Because it’s nearly impossible to sidestep the EMFs given off by these electronics, he had placed special ‘stickers’ touted to absorb these fields on all of the devices in the office. Doing so, he told me, prevented the EMFs from impacting his health.


“At first, I didn’t think anything of his condition or the stickers. But a few days into working in his office, I realized I was no longer dragging myself through the day. I felt great at work, but my symptoms would return when I went home. So I started researching EMFs, learning more about these invisible fields that are all around us and how many people suffer health consequences when they’re exposed.

How Tina turned her life around

“It all made sense! I realized I was sensitive to the EMFs from my computer, modem and other devices. I devoured information that explained how EMF exposure can bring on nausea, blinding headaches, fatigue and inability to concentrate. I never expected taking a new client would help me stumble onto the key to the mysterious symptoms my doctor had been unable to explain year after year. But now, I finally felt I knew the reason I was so drained and foggy — and that I wasn’t alone. I told my client what I’d learned, and he gave me some stickers to try at home.

Feeling better within an hour!

“I was so excited there might be a cure for what was robbing me of my life that I went overboard, putting stickers (I used EMF Transformers) on everything electric in my home. But when I put one on the computer, my headache vanished within an hour. The next day I felt fantastic and I’ve never looked back. Within a few days, all my debilitating symptoms vanished. Although the stickers seem to be the key for me, I also don’t keep my cellphone near my bed at night, and I use it on speaker when possible.
“Aside from little symptom flares that can happen if I stay at a friend’s house that isn’t protected, the fatigue, headaches and nausea haven’t returned. My energy is through the roof! I feel 20 years younger and, happily, I no longer drag myself through the day. Instead of living to sleep, I look forward to enjoying every minute of the day…well past 7 pm!

This content is not a substitute for professional medical advice or diagnosis. Always consult your physician before pursuing any treatment plan.

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