The Truth About EMF Blocking Clothing & Blankets - What You Should Know Before Wearing EMF Shielding.
EMF clothing rubs me the wrong way... And I've heard it from other people who are sensitive as well - people who can actually feel the invisible wireless energy (EHS Sensitive) often agree.
EMF Protection in the form of belly blankets, anti-radiation underwear, or anti-EMF hats can provide a false sense of security...
But there are awesome EMF solutions that do work all the time (like getting away from the source!) First, let me share the reasons I don't recommend EMF shielding clothing.
- It usually only covers or shields some of your body
- It can actually increase radiation and other EMF to the shielded and non-shielded areas of your body
- Almost all EMF protection clothing does not block magnetic EMF
What is EMF Protective Clothing and Anti-Radiation Clothing?
It's called Anti-EMF, Anti-Radiation, EMF-Protective, or EMF-Shielding clothing. It can look like a cap or a beanie. It can be a t-shirt or a jacket. EMF Shielded clothing can even be underwear, socks or gloves. The only difference is that these clothes are made using EMF-shielding fabric which can be any sort of metallic threading mixed into regular threading of cotton, polyester, nylon or other synthetic.
Most manufacturers, like Lambs or SYB (Shield Your Body) and LessEMF, use good ole silver -- but the metal can be stainless steel or copper, nickel or stainless steel.
Clothing Does Not Eliminate EMF!
The EMF doesn't go away.
It doesn't get absorbed.
This material shields only the parts of your body that it is covering by deflecting the electromagnetic radiation.
Why Is Anti-Radiation Clothing So Popular?
So many brands are selling anti-EMF clothing because so many people are buying it. With ads for hats and underwear that say "Blocks 99% of EMF" or "Stops Radiation" or "Mitigates the Effects of Anti-Oxidants" -- who wouldn't want some anti-radiation clothes?
Those claims are misleading. Those claims could lull us all into a false sense of security think if we just pop on an anti-radiation cap, we're good! 99% protected...
And add to those comforting claims, all of the manufacturers boast that they are scientifically certified or proven to block EMF radiation. And the fabric is certified to block. It truly is!
But here's what I think is happening:
I think most manufacturers or sellers of EMF clothing have good intentions. They know EMF can be dangerous to our health and they know metallic material can "block" it.
But they don't really understand the physics of how EMF travels and "hits" or touches our bodies. It's complicated...
I get it! I have been sensitive to EMF for decades. Over 25 years ago, I bought my first EMF meter. I wanted to find the EMF and get rid of it. I tried shielding fabrics and materials 15 years ago and knew immediately, because I could feel the energy, that something wasn't exactly right.
You'll see videos on SYB's (Shield Your Body) website, on No Choice, and influencers doing countless videos of how the clothes work by doing this:
- They put the EMF meter on top of the phone and take a measurement
- Next, the phone is under or inside or wrapped in the clothing
- Then they put the meter right on top of the clothing in which the phone is wrapped or covered
- Then they take the measurement again
Is that how the EMF protection clothes work? Do we cover our phones with a cap or underwear?
Sometimes Shielded Clothing Can Make EMF Exposure Worse
Does This Increase In EMF Happen All The Time?
Get an EMF meter here
USE SHIELDED CLOTHING CAREFULLY! Here's why...
1. EMF Protection Clothing Does Not Fully Shield
Building Biologist and author of "Exposed" and "99 Tips To Blocking EMF" Bill Cadwallader points out:
"What part of your body isn't important?"
2) It Can Actually Increase Radiation and Other EMF to the Shielded and NON-Shielded Areas of Your Body
3) New Research Shows Us Why EMF Blocking Clothing and Materials Need to Be Used VERY CAREFULLY or NOT AT ALL
A scientific research report Radiation and EMF Protection and Risks https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30831365/ has just been published. It covers how and why EMF (electromagnetic fields) have a biological effect. It discusses many types of EMF-protection shields including clothing, cellphone cases, and home shielding and how they can be problematic.
- Research shows they cause EMF interference and increased intensity to non-shielded parts of the body.
- The EMF protective clothing can attract EMF like an antenna and can increase it at the edge of the material.
See this post for a video with a demonstration and a warning from Dr. Klinghartd about other shielding.
Here's an excerpt from researcher Dimitris Panagopoulos and a study he released this year:
As explained already, one of the great dangers with partial shielding is that radiation can create interference spots of increased intensity at non-shielded parts of the body. This greatly depends on the position of the person in relation to the source(s). When a partially shielded person is moving, the spots of interference change unpredictably. In such a case the exposure on the non-shielded parts, as e.g. the head, may increase considerably at different instances/positions during movement.Moreover, as the metallic grid will attract upcoming EMFs on its external surface, wherever it touches the skin, it may increase the local exposure instead of decreasing.
EMF shielding clothing can increase EMF? EMF shielding clothing can decrease EMF?
What the Heck?
The research says it and experts say it: The decrease/increase issue with EMF protection clothing is real. Out in the world, these man-made electromagnetic fields are unpredictable. They don't all move in one direction like little soldiers. And we don't just have one kind of EMF to deal with. There are electric fields causing dirty electricity coming from wiring and anything that has an electrical component. The RF EMF comes from anything wireless and it has lower and higher frequencies in its category.
The shielding material interacts differently with different EMF and those waves or fields of energy come at us from all different directions.
Conductive Fabrics Used In Shielding Clothing Are Antennas
Michael Neuert from EMFCenter has a great course called EMF Solutions For Your health. I took one of the first sessions years ago and the course has become even more robust.
One of the sessions is a deep dive into EMF clothing. Michael teaches that these fabrics are conductive and that conductive fabric are antennas. Depending on the environment, what type of EMF is present and the direction it’s coming from, the clothing can either increase or decrease the exposure. His decades of experience echos what the research tells us.
He points out that the experience with EMF protection clothing is better when the fabric doesn't touch skin. He suggests to try using a type of material that has less metal because it will attract less electric fields and dirty electricity, although it won't block as much EMF.
I find that all shielding EMF protection products require thoughtful and careful use. That’s why aside from the simple and effective things you can do to stop the source of EMF, it’s best to consult and follow trusted experienced professionals. That’s what a I’ve learned from having EHS for 30 years and buying and trying just about every type of product that claimed it would block, stop, or harmonize EMF radiation. From chips to EMF shielding, I know stopping and blocking is NOT cut and dry. There’s no instant or quick fix -- except turning it off, or putting distance between you and the invisible energy or stepping into a Faraday cage -- without your devices.
The ONLY way to get 100% EMF radiation protection from your phone is to use a Faraday Bag. This demonstration shows how it works:
4) Anti-EMF Clothing, Blankets, Canopies and Silver Threaded Material Is Designed to Work on Just Two Types of EMF
Most materials used for EMF protection do not block magnetic fields. In fact, it takes a ton (not even kidding here) of metal to block magnetic fields. Although the term EMF is often used ambiguously to describe electric fields, magnetic fields, and radio frequencies, most EMF protective clothing will only reduce exposure to electric fields and RF radiation from radio frequencies only.
Magnetic can be very problematic for many people who are sensitive to EMF. In fact, when it comes to health issues, there are many studies that have isolated magnetic EMF and correlated it to significant biological damage. Larry Gust, our EMF expert at Tech Wellness, talks about how magnetic EMF that cannot be blocked by EMF protection clothing resulted in much higher incidence of chilhood leukemia in this video:
Most EMF Experts Do Not Recommend EMF Shielding Clothing, But Do Recommend EMF Shielding Bed Canopies and Home Shielding
From highly respected and highly trained electromagnetic radiation (EMR) Building Biologists to skilled engineers like Michael Neuert, most who truly understand the physics of electromagnetic radiation don't sell or offer shielded clothing.
Rob Metzinger explained that the metal fabric in EMF shielding blankets and clothing can be conductive or non-conductive and sometimes it can be insulated.
"When radio wave (EMF) hits a metal it causes internal current flow inside the material similar to the frequencies of the current that's hitting it. So does that current in turn transfer to the body?"
Rob cautions that there's still a lot more to learn about how the EMF protective clothing works.
And interestingly, Dr. Klinghardt, who believes in EMF protection clothing, does not recommend wearing an EMF protective cap. He told Dr. Mercola on a podcast that it's better to cover the body as much as possible vs wearing a hat. He said that since EMF is absorbed by our skin, covering the most of it is better. He talked about wearing an EMF protective Bhurka. This concept is what I observed from people who had severe EHS at the EMF conference. Total protection DOES make sense, because if you're completely covered you don't need to worry about drawback number 2: The potential for interference and increased intensity to non-shielded parts of the body.
Meanwhile, Michael Neurt says he sees the best results from EMF sensitive people when they wear a full "bee keepers" type of head gear that covers the face, head and shoulders.
Remember, it's not the shielding fabric that's the issue.
It's how and where the fabric is used. Almost every Building Biologist and skilled EMF expert absolutely does recommend shielded EMF protection fabric or material.
They understand how the material reflects and deflects and absorbs and will advise you in the proper way to use the material safely. They use it for curtains and bed canopies and to cover WiFi routers or put behind beds in hotel rooms.
Some People Say They Do Feel Better When They Use EMF Protective Clothing
It might be because they're using it in a low electric field environment. It might be because they're using a jacket and the material is not touching their body. It might be because they're covered head to toe.
Rob Metzinger, owner of Safe Living Technologies and an instructor at the Institute of Building Biology, told me he knows of people who feel better when they wear EMF protective clothing or blankets and he knows of others who don't. However, as we mentioned earlier, Rob is concerned that EMF blocking fabric could transfer the dangerous waves to our bodies.
If I was in a high wireless energy environment and I couldn't get away from the EMF, I would wear, for a short amount of time, a full EMF protection jumpsuit like the women I saw at the conference.
The best use practice for people who really need to be protected from ambient EMF is to be fully covered, head to toe, including face coverings.
These women said that they normally need face coverings when they venture out into the world because it's filled with wireless radiation that causes them to suffer from headaches, tingling, insomnia, and anxiety.
Also below, you’ll see the results of new research on the risks of EMF shielding.
If you do choose to use EMF protective clothing as part as your EMF blocking arsenal, be very aware of how you personally feel when you're wearing it.
If you feel uncomfortable, more uncomfortable than you are without this type of EMF mitigation, then try something else. The best course of EMF protection is always avoidance.
Tech Wellness has a list of EMF experts that are highly trained to help you mitigate electromagnetic exposures in your environment.
And please remember: EMF exposure is cumulative. Try to protect yourself as much as possible from exposure. And though there are thousands of peer reviewed studies that correlate EMF exposure to various states of disease, we’re still not certain exactly how EMF interacts with our bodies. If testicles and ovaries are protected, but other parts of the body are not... is that sufficient?
Dr. George Carlo, Public Health and EMF expert points out:
"Exposure does not define effect, not by a long shot, with respect to the wireless environment response dynamic. Here's why: Each person is different and for every physical metric of power density or field intensity, you have the biological aspect that occurs when waveforms interact with tissue in the individual person. And it matters what type of tissue- and what type of organ system is impacted. And it matters what compensation factors are operating in that person. Like age, gender and general state of wellness as well as environmental factors like chemicals, bugs and stressors. It's complicated and complex."
It's An Awesome Fact: The Best EMF Protection is FREE!
Top 10 Tech Wellness Top EMF Protection Tips to Reduce EMF Radiation
1. Maintain a Smart Distance From Your Smart Phone, Laptops, and WiFi - It Costs Nothing and It Works Best
Why? Radiation exposure drops significantly as you move it away from your body by orders of magnitude. EMFWise has a really good page of charts showing the safest distance you can be from any wireless device. The lengths are very conservative and the recommendations tell you the approximate distances required to reach the Salzburg Precautionary Limit of 2001 and 2002. They point out that with the high levels of power density coming from our newest devices is requiring that we move further and further away because effects are being reported at lower and lower levels of exposure. (But if you want to be super-safety minded check out this page.)
2. Use Speaker Phone Instead of Putting the Phone to Your Ear
I love to put my phone on a stand, at least one foot away, or hang it off my wrist using a strap. If it’s a sensitive matter or you just want to model good etiquette try a quality air tube headset.
3. Use A Faraday Bag To Completely Block Signal
For EMF protection and privacy, every Faraday in our collection (including the August Cross Body) completely blocks all RF signals and EMF radiation. Triple-lined Faraday material gives you impenetrable protection and complete privacy from 5G. Remember, when your smartphone is safe inside the Faraday pouch, YOU'RE OFF THE GRID. No calls, or texts, or news updates--and NO EM! Our August Crossbody features a "Talk Pocket" up front. If you need to make a call, just move the phone into the Talk Pocket sleeve, plug in your TAUKI air tube earphones and talk it out.
4. When Texting, Use a Stylus
Set the phone on a solid surface, whip out one of these and everyone in Starbucks will be instantly intrigued and you'll will enjoy some distance between the EMF and your fingertips. Many people are finding relief from "scrolling numbness" Have you ever noticed that you're fingers start to feel numb or tingle after touching the screen for awhile? That could be the RF radiation or Magnetic fields coming from the screen. A stylus will help.
5. Whenever Possible, Just Switch to Airplane Mode on All Your Devices
Reduce radiation further by turning off WiFi and BlueTooth when you're not using them. Do this on your laptop, tablet and computer. Remember that all the different functions eliminate a type of EMF: low-level Bluetooth radiation, cellphone signal radiation, and WiFi radiation are all spewing electromagnetic radiation.
6. Eliminate Radiation and EMF From Your Rejuvenation Spaces
And seriously my friends, please don’t bring your phone to bed with you! A recent survey showed that 71% of people who own a smartphone sleep with it! That’s shocking. Here’s something else very sad: 35% of respondents said their first thought in the morning is about their smartphone, 10% said it was for their significant other. The best practice is to leave your phone in another room and get an analog alarm clock. If you feel you MUST have it close by, at least switch to airplane mode before you turn in for the night.
7. Turn Your WiFi Off at Night or Whenever It's Not In Use
The WiFi is likely the greatest source of radiation in your home, so don't go near it to turn it off, instead use a remote switch to make it easier and safer.
8. Watch Your Bars and Signal Strength
The fewer signal bars your device is showing, the harder it is trying to connect with an antenna, WiFi, or base station. The EMF coming from your device can double in some cases! So be aware. If you’ve only got a bar or two, make sure you aren’t holding the phone and push it as far away as you can.
9. Connect Your Devices Without WiFi By Hard Wiring To The Internet
We make it easy with our Wire Up Kit. Try connecting your devices to the internet directly. You can hard wire with a Shielded Ethernet cable and you'll find an adapter for all your devices. This hard wiring hack completely eliminates wireless EMF radiation.
10. Remove Your Smart Meter
It's really the best option for many reasons. The full story here. If you can't remove it, you can remove some of the radiation by covering it.
READ 10 Reasons Why We Don't Sell Laptop Shields, Anti Radiation Cases, EMF Protection Chips, Gadgets or Shungite
Are you still thinking you should buy an Anti-radiation EMF protection cap? Almost Everyone Who Sells Shielding Clothing Quotes This Study...
I make it a point to read studies and not just quote from them. Many times I've seen studies misquoted or twisted in order to serve a particular purpose. In this case, to sell shielding caps.
This study is actually title, "Electrosmog and Auto-immune Disease"
Are auto-immune issues like Type 1 Diabetes, Lupus, MS, or Celiac Disease effected by wireless EMF?
The Study Comes From Researchers Who Focus on Autoimmune Disease And How They Respond To Certain Drugs and Supplements
The authors of the EMF and autoimmune study reference an earlier 2007 study that they did. In it, they focused on the drug Olmesartan and found that in addition to discovering things about the drug, "proteins are continually responsive to electromagnetic waves."
The authors found in other studies that this drug could produce immuno-stimulation in people with autoimmune diseases and they continued to do post-research follow up on many of the patients who participated.
"We have previously reported (9-13) that the drug Olmesartan could be re-targeted to produce immunostimulation in patients with autoimmune disease.
During that research, we used the emerging field of molecular dynamics (MD) to analyze the actions of both the drug olmesartan and the native ligand, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin-D (1,25-D) on the VDR Molecular dynamics is computationally intensive, as interactions between each atom in the VDR protein, its activating ligand, and the surrounding water are calculated incrementally as a function of time. We found that hydrogen bond exchange within the VDR exhibited structural resonances at frequencies typically found in modern Electrosmog."
The Researcher's Latest Study Was On Auto-immune symptoms and EMF
In this study, the authors advise people who have participated in their other studies involving Olmesartan and are considered "slow responders" to the drug therapy try electromagnetic protection as they make this EMF connection:
. . .the BioInitiative report noted “At least five new cell tower studies are reporting bioeffects in the range of 0.003–0.05 μW/cm2 researchers report headaches, concentration difficulties and behavioral problems in children and adolescents; and sleep disturbances, headaches and concentration problems in adults.” This level corresponds to −36 dBm, an exposure frequently being reported by slow responders in our olmesartan immunostimulation follow-up cohort. After consultation, and some initial data gathering with electromagnetic level meters, we decided to suggest that these slow responders might be wise to take steps to protect themselves from Electro-smog.
Later they decide to sew their own silver caps and give them to 64 of the slow responders from earlier studies who agree to try them.
They attempt to verify if wearing silver-threaded EMF blocking/shielding caps can help the symptoms of arthritis, MS, Lupus, Sjogrens and Celiac. They ask participants to wear silver caps for 4 hours during the day and 4 hours at night.
They decide not to do the research with a control group.
As these patients were all ill, many undergoing Olmesartan treatment with therapeutic intent, we decided that ethical considerations precluded the distribution of “placebo caps” without the silver threads.
Patients wore the silver EMF protection caps once and then reported if they noticed a change in symptoms. I've reached out to the lead researcher to verify if it's true that they only wore the cap once before reporting if they felt any result.
A photograph of a sleeping cap sewn from the microwave-shielding fabric
A huge 90% said they felt strongly. But they don't say if they feel strongly better or strongly worse.
"We sought patient-reported outcomes (PRO) of whether the garment had “No Effect,” a “Weak Effect,” a “Definite Effect” or a “Strong Effect,” regardless of whether the effect was good or bad."
The Radiation And EMF Protection Risks Study Actually References the Silver Cap Study and Calls Into Question Some of the Methods Used
There is concern that the study did not have a "control group" as most studies do. The control group would not have worn real silver caps and would have also self-reported symptoms.
A control group would have allowed researchers to evaluate the difference between the group that was using actual EMF protection caps and those that were not. It would have also shown if participants were just benefiting from the placebo effect.
"(Marshall and Rumann Heil, 2017). This article did not include statistical analysis, there was no control cap without metal grid to test for a possible placebo effect, and did not report whether the “change in the symptoms” was an improvement or worsening"
Clearly the silver EMF protection cap and symptoms of EHS or disease study is very unclear as to if they work or not...
Meanwhile, Chemical Sensitivity and Electromagnetic Sensitivity [ES] have been found to be significantly connected by a leading Chemical Sensitivities expert.
Chemical Sensitivity and Electromagnetic Sensitivity [ES] have been found to be significantly connected by a leading CS expert. Thousands of studies have been conducted on the effects of electromagnetic radiation, but there a very few studies that can prove the existence of EHS, notes Dr. Gunnar Heuser, MD PHD, from UCLA'S Brain Research Institute (BRI).
Dr. Heuser is an internationally recognized physician noted for his extensive research work on chemical sensitivity. He has written several books and published numerous scientific papers on the chemical sensitivity condition.
In September 2017, Heuser published a study to determine changes in the brains of ten adults living with ES. These people were exposed to significant levels of EMF and reported the following symptoms: headaches, sporadic cognitive and memory problems, and intermittent disorientation.
The results from the fMRI (a form of magnetic resonance imaging of the brain that registers blood flow to functioning areas of the brain) showed consistent abnormalities called hyper-connectivity. I met with Dr. Heuser a couple of years ago and he explained that certain connections were gone or impaired.
Good question. And the reason it’s such a good question is because the symptoms that people develop after chemical exposure are almost identical to the ones that they develop from electromagnetic field exposure. So, you don’t always know. And the dangerous thing is that many patients who have the EHS have a history of exposure to chemicals.
If you really want shielding that truly protects, try a grounded bed canopy. They're complicated and can be dangerous if not used or set up correctly, but when they are, the EMF-free-ness of it all is truly magical!
Thank you for visiting Tech Wellness and reading this post. Please let us know if you have any questions or comments and...
Be well!
xo
August
Hi Marvin, You’re right, when the phone is wrapped in protective material the antenna works harder, creating a stronger signal. This is an important illustration of why EMF protective clothing can be very dangerous. When it’s close to or in contact with a phone or a laptop, it can not only reflect the antenna EMF signal and cause it to pool or increase, it can also cause the phone or device to send a stronger signal as it can interfere with the signal that is trying to reach the device by “blocking” it.
I believe the reason you get a stronger EMF reading when the phone is wrapped in the shirt is because the phone can’t detect any cell towers and is designed to increase the signal strength to attempt to connect to what it believes is a ‘weak’ signal. Instead of using a phone I suggest trying a different type of EMF source to wrap in the shirt and see if the EMF reading changes.
Yes I have found this as well. You trade off one emf for another. But you mention Dr. Klinghardt and what he shares but he actually sells caps and neck gators with the silver in it. Have you found he has a safer different approach? When I put his hat and scarf on I got nauseous right away. I wonder if that is temporary to it working and detox or if it was causing it to be worse. I would be interested in your thoughts. here is the link to his store https://store.biopureus.com/search?q=emf&type=product
The author makes good points. Shielded clothing should only be necessary when a person is away from home, in crowded places where you cannot mitigate emf radiation sources, as you can in your own home. Also, ensuring the material is either non-conductive or (if it is conductive), the conductive side is on the outer surface (not next to the skin) is recommended. Use in such a way that this expensive clothing goes over your regular clothes, so that you do not have to wash the protective clothing much, since each washing will lessen its effectiveness.
What are you trying to do. Convince people not to get emf protection clothing? You sound jealous