Risks of sleeping near smart meters?

[Sarah in SC]

Hey now! Let's not start a civil war here! At least here up in the North we don't have people ... oh never mind, I won't lob that battle grenade. .

This specific battle is between the two Carolinas, not to do with the further north states. Perhaps someone in West Virginia can help me explain it to you.

 

[JoeWras]

This specific battle is between the two Carolinas, not to do with the further north states. Perhaps someone in West Virginia can help me explain it to you.

"Old North State" since 1710 and proud of it.

 

[Sarah in SC]

"Old North State" since 1710 and proud of it.

My bad--didn't realize you were one of dem dere Tar Heels. /)

 

[bld999]

Tinfoil hats can't hold a candle to a well made chickenwire lid.

 

[Walt34]

This specific battle is between the two Carolinas, not to do with the further north states. Perhaps someone in West Virginia can help me explain it to you.

Sorry, don't have a clue. Too busy hunting bears/deer/possum to research it.

 

[tuixiu]

Other posters nailed it, you might as well worry about garage door openers, wifi routers, and baby monitors. The emissions are so low and infrequent, it truly is the realm of those who need to find a way to worry.

 

[haha]

I think the biggest risk is that you will get a lot of ribbing if you admit to this concern on the forum.

 

[ChiliPepr]

Tinfoil hats can't hold a candle to a well made chickenwire lid.

I prefer the Aluminum Foil Deflector Beanie!

 

[Walt34]

I prefer the Aluminum Foil Deflector Beanie!

Odd.... I haven't seen the author of that site on http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f29/what-did-you-do-today-37868.html

Pretty extensive site for a joke.

 

[samclem]

I think the biggest risk is that you will get a lot of ribbing if you admit to this concern on the forum.

No kidding. I was going to ask a question about the magnetic bracelet I'm using, but now I think I'll just keep it to myself. Ooops.

 

[braumeister]

No kidding. I was going to ask a question about the magnetic bracelet I'm using, but now I think I'll just keep it to myself. Ooops.

It's fascinating to see how it never actually touches your wrist, due to being opposite polarity from your magnetic personality.

 

[rgarling]

Those wires create an electric field which (for sure) is inducing voltage in your body. You could measure how much voltage with a digital volt meter. Whether that harms you or not is debatable.

There is theory and study evidence that 'earthing' has benefit. Anyhow, it is a simple matter to ground out the induced voltage. You can get started learning about this by visiting earthing.com (no affiliation -- not a customer).

 

[BigNick]

There is theory and study evidence that 'earthing' has benefit. Anyhow, it is a simple matter to ground out the induced voltage. You can get started learning about this by visiting earthing.com (no affiliation -- not a customer).

That site is a hilarious pile of pseudoscience. If 1% of it were true, a Nobel Prie awaits its owner. Of course walking barefoot along a beach feels good, but it ain't due to any "energy field". (Why does Every. Single. Thing. to do with Alt-Med have to involve an "energy field", when nobody involved can even say how this "energy field" is measured? Is it just because it sounds like something out of Star Trek?)

 

[rgarling]

That site is a hilarious pile of pseudoscience. ...

Yes, the language they use pretty much targets the flower-pickers among us. Did you find & read any of the actual studies?

Earthing sounds odd at first, but when you think about it, humans evolved in close contact with the ground, meaning minimal exposure to electrical fields. The mitochondria in each of our trillions of cells rely on the movement of electrons to create energy; also, neurons rely on the transmission of electrical charges. These systems involve minute charges that can be affected by small electric fields.

Anyhow, it has been shown in controlled studies that earthing indeed alters physiology. Also, people tend to report common experiences after being grounded (e.g. reduced pain, better sleep, more energy, ...). There are some youtube videos and google will bring up some of the studies, which will bypass most of the 'woo' found on earthing.com

 

[Redbugdave]

Hey Omni...It does not hurt to ask. I would wonder, too.

All I can say is: Omni's thread has attracted the Mad Hatters like moths to a light bulb...Ha!

 

[MichaelB]

Since we have many informed and educated posters here, I'm curious to know if there are any possible negative health effects from spending 7-8 hours every night with my head about 1 foot away from these meters?

Am I the only one who thinks sleeping near 13 smart meters might be a good thing? Maybe you will wake up every day with a few extra IQ points from them, being how they are smart and all.

Here's an interesting tidbit (my bold) http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/03/magazine/jumper-cables-for-the-mind.html?ref=health&_r=0

This couldn’t possibly be a good idea. On Friday the 13th of September, in an old brick building on 13th Street in Boston’s Charlestown neighborhood, a pair of electrodes was attached to my forehead, one over my brain’s left prefrontal cortex, the other just above my right eye socket. I was about to undergo transcranial direct-current stimulation, or tDCS, an experimental technique for delivering extremely low dose electrical stimulation to the brain. Using less than 1 percent of the electrical energy necessary for electroconvulsive therapy, powered by an ordinary nine-volt battery, tDCS has been shown in hundreds of studies to enhance an astonishing, seemingly implausible variety of intellectual, emotional and movement-related brain functions. And its side effects appear limited to a mild tingling at the site of the electrode, sometimes a slight reddening of the skin, very rarely a headache and certainly no seizures or memory loss. Still, I felt more than a bit apprehensive as I prepared to find out if a little bit of juice could amp up my cognitive reserves and make me, in a word, smarter.

 

[ERD50]

Those wires create an electric field which (for sure) is inducing voltage in your body. You could measure how much voltage with a digital volt meter.

... You can get started learning about this by visiting earthing.com (no affiliation -- not a customer).

Yes, the language they use pretty much targets the flower-pickers among us. Did you find & read any of the actual studies?
...

No, I'm not going to waste time at their site. Your first statement that I bolded indicates how ridiculous this is.

If you can show me that you can actually measure the voltage induced in your body from one (or 13) of those smart meters on the other side of a wall, I'll show a bit of interest. There's just no way that is going to be measurable w/o the most sophisticated and expensive equipment under carefully controlled conditions - if even then.

It is a super involved process to measure the Specific Absorbed Radiation of cell phones, which are held right up to the head. There is just no way to measure this stuff on the other side of a wall with a basic digital volt meter. They can't even measure the frequencies involved, just no way.


-ERD50

 

[rgarling]

No, I'm not going to waste time at their site. Your first statement that I bolded indicates how ridiculous this is.

If you can show me that you can actually measure the voltage induced in your body from one (or 13) of those smart meters on the other side of a wall, I'll show a bit of interest.

This doesn't have (much) to do about the radio frequency transmissions of the meters; however, I'm talking about the AC power. The presence of these alternating electric fields induces voltage in your body (a conductor). Measuring these induced voltages is as easy as:

1. Drive an electrically conductive stake in the ground (probably 6-8" is adequate).
2. Attach a long wire to the stake and the other end to one of the electrodes on your digital volt meter.
3. Turn on the meter and measure AC volts.
4. Hold the other electrode of the volt meter in your hand
5. Walk around. When you get close to power lines, whether overhead or in the walls of your house the voltage will rise. (Assuming you are wearing the normal insulating footwear that nearly everyone wears.)

Earthing has to do with grounding these stray induced voltages. If you have an oscilloscope, you can see the actual frequencies being generated within you (mostly harmonics of 60 hz).

I look forward to your analysis of the various studies...

 

[Bestwifeever]

That site is a hilarious pile of pseudoscience. If 1% of it were true, a Nobel Prie awaits its owner. Of course walking barefoot along a beach feels good, but it ain't due to any "energy field". (Why does Every. Single. Thing. to do with Alt-Med have to involve an "energy field", when nobody involved can even say how this "energy field" is measured? Is it just because it sounds like something out of Star Trek?)

Energy fields and essential oils, the solution to everything that ails you (according to the massage therapist I had the misfortune to "enjoy" as a gift from DH--great massage, but she did not stop talking about these two things the whole time. I was ready to connect a smart meter to her head by the end of the hour).

 

[ERD50]

This doesn't have (much) to do about the radio frequency transmissions of the meters; however, I'm talking about the AC power. The presence of these alternating electric fields induces voltage in your body (a conductor). Measuring these induced voltages is as easy as:

1. Drive an electrically conductive stake in the ground (probably 6-8" is adequate).
2. Attach a long wire to the stake and the other end to one of the wire to one of the electrodes on your digital volt meter.
3. Turn on the meter and measure AC volts.
4. Hold the other electrode of the volt meter in your hand
5. Walk around. When you get close to power lines, whether overhead or in the walls of your house the voltage will rise. (Assuming you are wearing the normal insulating footwear that nearly everyone wears.)

Earthing has to do with grounding these stray induced voltages. If you have an oscilloscope, you can see the actual frequencies being generated within you (mostly harmonics of 60 hz).

I look forward to your analysis of the various studies...

So you might be able to measure 60 cycle power this way. Most likely the meter leads are acting as antenna as much/more than your body. It takes some significant effort to perform a measurement like this with any accuracy, including shielded meter leads, and validation of your set up to null out parasitics from other sources. Just walking around and seeing a number on a meter means almost nothing. But non-technical people may be impressed.

So this has nothing to do with measurements of the signals from the smart meters, and since we are hit with 60 hz all day at very high power levels with no apparent ill effects, it's a real stretch to say that a few seconds or minutes of this < 1watt of power is an issue.

There is plenty of real science on this, pseudo-science sites are a waste of time.

-ERD50

 

[rgarling]

...since we are hit with 60 hz all day at very high power levels with no apparent ill effects...
-ERD50

Sorry, you've gone full circle.

The science shows that being insulated from ground has effects. Are they ill effects? I think possibly yes. Others may want to find out for themselves.

 

[ERD50]

Sorry, you've gone full circle.

The science shows that being insulated from ground has effects. Are they ill effects? I think possibly yes. Others may want to find out for themselves.

What science shows this?

At any rate, there are things that are clearly harmful to us that we should all spend far more time doing something about, than to invest any time at all acting on some unknown, undefined threat with no real evidence that those actions would actually provide any result.

Aren't you afraid of being so near a computer?

-ERD50

 

[rgarling]

What science shows this?
...
Aren't you afraid of being so near a computer?

-ERD50

Here is one of many: Earthing: Health Implications of Reconnecting the Human Body to the Earth's Surface Electrons


No; however, I somewhat fear false assumptions. They are blinding.

 

[bld999]

Here is one of many: Earthing: Health Implications of Reconnecting the Human Body to the Earth's Surface Electrons


No; however, I somewhat fear false assumptions. They are blinding.

From the linked article:

"Disclosure

G. Chevalier, S. T. Sinatra, and J. L. Oschman are independent contractors for Earthx L. Inc., the company sponsoring earthing research, and own a small percentage of shares in the company."

 

[ls99]

Earthing

The solution is simple:

Be sure to walk around barefoot, preferably tromping through as many puddles as possible to ensure good ground contact.

To enhance the long term experiennce, consider wearing tin foil golf shoes with spikes to really improve earth contact.

excerpt from the OP's referenced "research" paper. Do note the bits I highlighted

"Reconnection with the Earth's electrons has been found to promote intriguing physiological changes and subjective reports of well-being. Earthing (or grounding) refers to the discovery of benefits—including better sleep and reduced pain—from walking barefoot outside or sitting, working, or sleeping indoors connected to conductive systems that transfer the Earth's electrons from the ground into the body. This paper reviews the earthing research and the potential of earthing as a simple and easily accessed global modality of significant clinical importance."

I thought it was from the Onion.