Non-thermal microwave injuries

Oct 21, 2020 3 Replies

Rate this thread:

bob prohaska 5 years ago

When the first reports of diplomats at the American Havana Embassy falling ill were caused by microwave injuries it seemd quite implausible. Now it seems more incidents have emerged, and the Frey effect, discovered in the early

1960's, at least indirectly supports the idea microwaves can have lasting non- thermal effects on humans. The article is at

formatting link

There are links within the article to the Frey effect.

If anybody can shed further light please do. I always though microwave injuries were exclusively thermal.

Thanks for reading,

bob prohaska

Vote

Bill Gill 5 years ago

In 1970 I was working for a small company making cardiac pace makers. We received reports that people with pace makers were being affected by microwave ovens. We did some tests and found that leaky microwaves could interfere with our pace makers. It wasn't a huge effect, you had to be pretty close, but they did interfere.

Bill

Vote

danny burstein 5 years ago

From what I was taught way back this problem was from the magnetic fields associated with the way microwave ovens worked, and not with the microwaves themselves. Hence a very quick dropoff of problems if you were just a couple of feet away. (Inverse square law and all that).

Reason: early pacemakers used a simple magnetic relay to put them into "test mode". So if you went to the cardiologist for a checkup, they'd take EKGs, etc., both with and without a magnet over your chest.

_____________________________________________________ Knowledge may be power, but communications is the key dannyb@panix.com [to foil spammers, my address has been double rot-13 encoded]

Vote

Peter 5 years ago

I recall accounts of telephone engineers installing line-of-sight microwave links being unable to sire children because their gonads were damaged by microwave radiation. But that would have been heat--Fry not Frey, if you'll excuse the pun.

When, once, reference was made to a statesman almost universally recognized as one of the villains of this century, in order to induce him to a negative judgment, he replied: "My situation is so different from his, that it is not for me to pass judgment". Ernst Specker on Paul Bernays

Vote

Join the Discussion

Have something to add? Share your thoughts — no account required.

Didn't find your answer?

Ask the community — no account required