Most of the smart devices we use today utilize radio frequency or electromagnetic waves to communicate. These waves are constantly flowing all around us the entire time. However, for us to understand the dangers of smart meters, we first need to know what it is and how does it work.
What is a Smart Meter?
A smart meter utilizes wireless technology to enable your electrical and gas suppliers to measure your daily usage remotely to gather more data. This meter communicates by using the same radio frequency EMF signals that are produced by your smartphones and Wi-Fi router. These meters are being set up to provide the utility company and you with the data of how much electricity you have been using or how gas it has taken to heat the water in your radiator pipes.
We cover “how to hide your radiator pipes” in this article here if you want to jump across.
How Dangerous is a Smart Meter?
Simply said, there have been some pieces of evidence that suggest that these smart meters might cause some health issues. Smart meters are known to produce radiofrequency (RF) radiation, and it is a type of low-energy radiation. RF radiations are unable to remove charged particles like electron as it does not have sufficient energy to do so. Hence, it is due to this reason that it’s considered to be non-ionizing radiation.
This type of radiation possesses enough energy to cause the atoms of a certain molecule to move around, and it may also cause these atoms to vibrate. This will certainly cause some amount of heat energy to be produced; however, it would not be possible for it to directly damage the DNA. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has also categorized the RF radiation as “potentially carcinogenic”.
Says Ben Race a heating engineer from the Newcastle branch of the Easy Boiler Company in the UK
The decision to conclude the level of harm that this radiation might have to humans is based on the discovery that has been revealed in research that suggests that there might have a logical connection between the use of smartphones and the development of tumor cancer in the brain. Since this type of radiation is potentially carcinogenic and smart meters tend to produce them, there could be a possibility that smart meters have a direct impact on increasing the risk of having cancer.
However, it would be difficult for the researchers to experiment to prove the connection between cancer developments and people living in a house that utilizes smart meters. This is because people nowadays are exposed to multiple types of sources that produce this type of radiation. At the same time, most smart meters tend to produce only a tiny amount of RF radiations compared to other devices such as smartphones; thus, the probability of a smart meter causing any form of cancer to humans is exceptionally low.
Do Smart Meters Have the Potential to Cause Any Other Health Issues?
There have not been any studies that have been made available to the public involving the potential health issues caused by a smart meter. Most of the studies that have been published tend to focus on RF radiations emitted from other types of common devices such as smartphones. However, it is a fact that a high level of exposure to radiofrequency radiations might cause serious burns when it is in direct contact with the skin.
There have been no other types of health issues that are reported as of today. However, there is a concern that suggested that the radiofrequency waves might cause a type of interference to the electronic medical devices used by some people like the heart pacemaker. A study that observes the impacts of radiofrequency waves on heart pacemakers proved that the device was not interfered in any way by radiofrequency waves.
What are the Effects of Using a Smart Meter in My House?
Even though there is no evidence to support the claim that the use of a smart meter is harmful to our health, there have been numerous complaints made by people that state that they experienced a sudden spike in headaches, dizziness, memory problems, ear pain, anxiety, sleeping issues, and heart palpitations. Regardless of whether you are exposed to a high or low level of radiofrequency radiation, it certainly has a negative impact on your general health and well-being.
The standard safety limit for RF radiation is currently being set to 1000 microwatts for every meter square. You can check However, in most cases, there are certain types of smart meters that tend to emit 60 times more than this amount of RF radiation. This RF radiation level is equal to the amount produced by a total of 160 smartphones. On top of that, smart meters have also been known to constantly emits RF radiation and transmitting data not just inside your house but also around the entire building.
How Do I Protect Myself from This Radiation?
There are some quick and simple things that you can do to protect yourself and your family members from being affected by RF radiation. I can guarantee you that you can do all the things that will be provided as they are extremely easy to do. One of the things you can do is contact your utility company to know for certain as to whether you have a smart meter installed in your house.
Depending on your geographical locations, you might have the option to not use a smart meter in your home. You will then be offered to use a traditional meter instead. However, there might be an additional fee that you need to pay every month to continue using the traditional meter. Hence, if you have no problem spending some money to secure your health, then you are good.
How to block smart meter signals
On the other hand, if you do not want to waste your money every month or simply do not choose to use a smart meter, you may use a smart meter protector or guard often referred to as a faraday cage or EMF shield cover These also come in fabric form known as EMF protection fabric. It is simply a type of solid case that you may use to cover your smart meter. This protective case is usually made from a metal mesh screen that is highly conductive. What it does is that it helps you to block approximately 91 to 94.9% of all the RF radiations that are emitted from your smart meter. They are widely available in most hardware stores, and it is cheap, so there’s no excuse not to buy one.
You can buy the Faraday fabric on the image/link below, some use cases include:
- How to block smart meter radiation
- How to block smart meter transmissions
- Smart meter covers
- Smart meter guards
Check price here for Faraday EMF protection fabric
Check price & availability for the Faraday smart meter guard here