Published: 29 April 2026 | Editor

In our EMFSA April 2026 Roundup, you can read about a new study in which the authors provide the first experimental evidence that atmospheric electrical charges alone can cause pollen rupture, generating respirable subpollen particles—one of the key triggers of thunderstorm asthma. Source: Venkatesan et al. (2026).

 Historical

In 2016, Melbourne faced the world’s worst thunderstorm asthma event. A single storm affected about 10,000 people, overwhelmed hospitals, and led to 10 deaths. Ruptured rye grass pollen filled the air, causing sudden breathing crises—even among those with no history of asthma. Source: Huang et al., Asia Pacific Allergy (2022).

Electrohypersensitivity (EHS)

Explore an excerpt discussing an Electrohypersensitive  (EHS) study, as per the Swiss expert group on electromagnetic fields and non-ionising radiation (BERENIS), Newsletter No. 44, April 2026.

Tattoo-associated cutaneous sarcoidosis

Lara Saeid and colleagues from the Department of Hematology of Tishreen University Hospital, Lattakia, Syria, reported an unusual case, that underscores the systemic nature of sarcoidosis and reminds clinicians that tattoo-associated cutaneous sarcoidosis can be the first visible manifestation of a multisystem granulomatous disease.

In EMFSA April 2026 Roundup we look at Ghost Signals: Science vs speculation—what EMF can actually do today vs what’s being claimed.

Are there Static Magnetic Fields (SMF) near smartphone surfaces?

Read about a study where the authors mapped the spatial distributions of Static Magnetic Fields (SMF) near smartphone surfaces and evaluated their potential biomedical relevance using computational exposure models.

What did the authors find?

The Clock is Ticking: Ongoing IARC, WHO Research into RF-EMF. In this section we look at timelines for ongoing research.

We included a quote by Leszczynski (2023) to prompt further reflection on this topic.

And a gentle reminder that sunlight when viewed through normal glass is not the same as natural outside light.

Link to our April 2026 Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/emfsa/magnetic-field-mats-what-to-know

Further reading

References:

Swiss Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH). (2025, July 1). Magnetic field mats https://www.bag.admin.ch/dam/en/sd-web/LWdHoJeMwMjk/Fact-sheet-magnetic-field-mats.pdf 

Venkatesan S, Zare A, Alinaghipour B, Lamont J, Ristovski ZD, Morton DAV, Stevanovic S. Impact of Atmospheric Charge Regimes (Static Fields and Arcing) on Airborne Tree Pollen Rupture under Dry and Wet Conditions. Environ Sci Technol. 2026 Apr 7;60(13):10129-10138. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.5c16155. Epub 2026 Mar 26. PMID: 41887923. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41887923/ 

Huang F, Wang DH, Foo CT, Young AC, Fok JS, Thien F. The Melbourne epidemic thunderstorm asthma event 2016: a 5-year longitudinal study. Asia Pac Allergy. 2022 Oct 27;12(4):e38. doi: 10.5415/apallergy.2022.12.e38. PMID: 36452015; PMCID: PMC9669468. Copyright © 2022. Asia Pacific Association of Allergy, Asthma and Clinical Immunology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36452015/

Swiss expert group on electromagnetic fields and non-ionising radiation (BERENIS), Newsletter No. 44, April 2026  https://www.bafu.admin.ch/en/berenis-newsletter-en 

Woman Develops Systemic Sarcoidosis After Eyebrow Tattoo – Medscape – April 27, 2026 https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/woman-develops-systemic-sarcoidosis-after-eyebrow-tattoo-2026a1000d87 

L. Zastko, L. Kubičková, J. Míšek, I. Kuchta, L. Makinistian and I. Belyaev, “Characterization of Static Magnetic Fields Produced by Smartphones,” in IEEE Journal of Electromagnetics, RF and Microwaves in Medicine and Biology, doi: 10.1109/JERM.2026.3683318. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11494332

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6th Dec 2023

The ban on mobile phones in Russian school classrooms is now legally mandated by the Russian Parliament- State Duma, effective today.

The ban was established for the first time in the mandatory Sanitary Regulations from January 2021. Now the ban on the use of mobile phones in school lessons has been included in the Russian Education Law. 

This outcome is the result of work the Russian National Committee on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection began in conjunction with Professor. V. Kuchma’s team in the summer of 2020 – reducing the risk to children’s health from a complex of harmful factors associated with information and communication technologies. Among the sources of risk in the first place is a cell phone or smartphone.

Source:

Dr.  Oleg A. GRIGORIEV

Dr. Sc.  (radiobiology), Ph.D.  (radiobiology & hygiene of non-ionizing radiation)

Chairman, Russian National Committee on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection

Chairman of the Non-ionizing Radiation Departments, Scientific Consul for Radiobiology of the Russian Academy of Science and Radiobiology Scientific Society of the Russian Academy of Science.

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Key Points

Question  Is artificial light at night (ALAN) associated with sleep disorders in Chinese children?

Findings  In this cross-sectional study including 201 994 participants from the National Chinese Children Health Study, children with high levels of outdoor ALAN exposure had increased sleep scores and increased odds of sleep disorder symptoms. Children’s age modified the associations of outdoor ALAN with sleep score and sleep disorders, and the associations were generally stronger in children younger than 12 years.

Meaning  These findings suggest that reducing the amount of outdoor light pollution in China could reduce the severity of sleep disorders among children.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2792494

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The app is a major source of raw location data for a multibillion-dollar industry that buys, packages, and sells people’s movements

By: Jon Keegan and Alfred Ng

December 6, 2021

Life360, a popular family safety app used by 33 million people worldwide, has been marketed as a great way for parents to track their children’s movements using their cellphones. The Markup has learned, however, that the app is selling data on kids’ and families’ whereabouts to approximately a dozen data brokers who have sold data to virtually anyone who wants to buy it. 

Through interviews with two former employees of the company, along with two individuals who formerly worked at location data brokers Cuebiq and X-Mode, The Markup discovered that the app acts as a firehose of data for a controversial industry that has operated in the shadows with few safeguards to prevent the misuse of this sensitive information. The former employees spoke with The Markup on the condition that we not use their names, as they are all still employed in the data industry. They said they agreed to talk because of concerns with the location data industry’s security and privacy and a desire to shed more light on the opaque location data economy. All of them described Life360 as one of the largest sources of data for the industry. 

“We have no means to confirm or deny the accuracy” of whether Life360 is among the largest sources of data for the industry, Life360 founder and CEO Chris Hulls said in an emailed response to questions from The Markup. “We see data as an important part of our business model that allows us to keep the core Life360 services free for the majority of our users, including features that have improved driver safety and saved numerous lives.”

A former X-Mode engineer said the raw location data the company received from Life360 was among X-Mode’s most valuable offerings due to the sheer volume and precision of the data. A former Cuebiq employee joked that the company wouldn’t be able to run its marketing campaigns without Life360’s constant flow of location data. 

Read more at: https://themarkup.org/privacy/2021/12/06/the-popular-family-safety-app-life360-is-selling-precise-location-data-on-its-tens-of-millions-of-user

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High levels of exposure can increase risk of short-sightedness by up to 80%

Date: October 7, 2021

Source: Anglia Ruskin University

Summary: A new study has revealed a link between screen time and higher risk and severity of myopia, or short-sightedness, in children and young adults.

A new study published in one of the world’s leading medical journals has revealed a link between screen time and higher risk and severity of myopia, or short-sightedness, in children and young adults.

The open-access research, published this week in The Lancet Digital Health, was undertaken by researchers and eye health experts from Singapore, Australia, China and the UK, including Professor Rupert Bourne from Anglia Ruskin University (ARU). The authors examined more than 3,000 studies investigating smart device exposure and myopia in children and young adults aged between 3 months old and 33 years old.

After analysing and statistically combining the available studies, the authors revealed that high levels of smart device screen time, such as looking at a mobile phone, is associated with around a 30% higher risk of myopia and, when combined with excessive computer use, that risk rose to around 80%.

The research comes as millions of children around the world have spent substantial time using remote learning methods following the closure of schools due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read more at:

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/10/211007122131.htm

Journal Reference:

1. Joshua Foreman, Arief Tjitra Salim, Anitha Praveen, Dwight Fonseka, Daniel Shu Wei Ting, Ming Guang He, Rupert R A Bourne, Jonathan Crowston, Tien Y Wong, Mohamed Dirani. Association between digital smart device use and myopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The Lancet Digital Health, 2021; DOI: 10.1016/S2589-7500(21)00135-7

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Abstract

COVID-19 has caused obstacles in continuing normal life almost everywhere in the world by causing the implementation of social distancing and eventually imposing the lockdown. This has become the reason for the increase in technology usage in daily life for professional work as well as for entertainment purposes. There has been an increased prevalence of technology usage in adolescents and children during lockdown leaving its impact on their lives either in a positive or negative aspect. The overall documented percentage increase of technology usage in children was about 15%, of which smartphone usage has 61.7% of prevalence. Disturbance in brain functioning is suggested to be originated by compromise of neuroplasticity of the nerves. The radiofrequency (RF) radiations emitting from the smartphone are of doubtful concern as a brain tumor risk factor in children. The increased usage can have effects on brain functioning that will compromise sleep and cognitive abilities and develop risk for certain mental illnesses including, but not limited to, depression, anxiety, Alzheimer’s disease, and attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder (ADHD). Despite being a threat for developing mental illness, video games are proven to reduce depression and anxiety, and increase creativity, skills, and cognition in children. The increased usage of technology can have a positive and negative impact on the mental development of adolescents and children depending on the trends in the usage. However, parents should be monitoring their children’s mental health and behavior in these difficult times of pandemic.

https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1126

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Abstract

Background and aims:

The outbreak of COVID-19 led to a significant psychological impact on individuals, particularly those belonging to vulnerable groups. This study aimed to synthesize literature on the psychological impact of COVID-19 among children and adolescents.

Methods:

Electronic search engines were used to identify studies till March 2021 that reported symptoms of psychological origin in children and adolescents. Information was extracted using a predefined template, and qualitative analysis was conducted using STROBE.

Results:

One hundred and two relevant papers were identified. Most of the studies were conducted online or telephonically. The study designs were primarily single group cross-sectional, though a few prospective/retrospective designs were also identified. Studies assessing emotional distress showed variable levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms in the study population, with greater severity of anxiety symptoms among females and older adolescents. Reduced physical activity; delayed sleep time; increased sleep duration, screen time, internet use, and sedentary habits, poor quality of life were other notable findings, often correlating with anxiety/depression. Efforts to address bias, discussion on generalizability of their results, and sample size calculation were not reported in most studies.

Conclusion:

Psychological impact on children/adolescents is significant, either due to the fear of the illness or social isolation related to COVID-19. One may focus on improving sleep habits and physical activity and regulating internet use for maintaining psychological well-being.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/02537176211021789

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Long-term exposure to physical agents can be detrimental to children due to their vulnerability. This study aimed to assess and compare the electromagnetic field (EMF) exposure level around the kindergartens from the underground transmission line (UGTL). We investigated randomly selected 24 kindergartens based on the location of the UGTL. The EMF emission levels were measured using an EMDEX II (Electric and Magnetic Digital Exposure Meter). The maximum mean value of the EMF emission level was 13.5 mG around the kindergartens and 17.7 mG from the point of UGTL to kindergartens. EMF emission level around the kindergartens was significantly associated with the location of the UGTL (t = −7.35, P < 0.001). These estimates are not trivial, as long-term exposure to EMF among kindergarten children can lead to different health problems. Routine monitoring of EMF emission levels is recommended including the awareness of EMF exposure to public citizens.

Extract

Our preliminary findings have implications for the design of larger studies and the improvement of EMF-related policies in South Korea and other nations. Besides, EMF exposure effects on children are not well-established, children’s susceptibility to EMF exposure should be lowered, and safety precaution standards should be enforced. Furthermore, potential hazards from EMF exposure should be studied more accurately to develop appropriate public policy for the protection of the children’s health.

Conclusion

This article provides the ideal concept for conducting the personal EMF exposure assessment from UGTL among the children for future EMF-related epidemiological studies. It is not appropriate to ignore the fact that EMFs are potentially carcinogenic to children. Proper installation solutions should be implemented for the minimization of the EMF level around the public sensitive areas with routine monitoring.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fped.2021.694407/full

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Abstract

Background

Following the inception of video games and the subsequent development of progressive innovations in videogame technology, many reports of videogame-related dermatologic conditions soon emerged in literature. Children and adolescents, in particular, are among the most avid consumers of online digital entertainment.

In an effort to better detail the impacts of these cutaneous manifestations and provide recommendations for injury prevention as it relates to video games, we performed an extensive systems-based literature review pertaining to the clinical features, etiology, diagnosis, and treatment of reported cases of dermatoses resulting from the misuse of video games.

Results

A literature review using PubMed, SCOPUS, Ovid MEDLINE and EMBASE was performed. Hardware implicated in the reported cases include video games consoles, personal computers, laptop computers, mobile phones and tablets. The dermatologic conditions are primarily localized to the extremities, particularly the palms and fingers. The majority are associated with repetitive friction and trauma, as well as allergic contact sensitivities. For all cutaneous manifestations induced by video gaming, early recognition and removal of the offending agent was most often described as effective in symptom resolution.

Conclusions

The universal use and pervasive popularity of video games for recreational purposes present an emerging dermatological concern. As videogames become increasingly advanced and immersive, various cutaneous conditions arising from intensive gaming will likely become common over time. Consequently, it is critical that dermatologists consider video games with a high index of suspicion when encountering dermatological ailments in underage patients engaging in persistent gaming behavior.

Extract

2. Conclusions

With the technological revolution, games have spatially shifted from the real-world arena to virtual world web, with adolescents being among the most avid consumers. Although playing video games is one of the most popular leisure activities in the world, there has been considerable debate about the influence of gaming that may continue without a clear consensus in the foreseeable future. The untimely and daily use of video games can be responsible for a certain number of organic pathologies, including benign and reversible dermatoses. For all cutaneous manifestations induced by modern-age sources, cessation of use is a sensible and often most effective treatment.

It seems apparent that this field would benefit greatly from validated measures that quantify or categorize the types of cutaneous manifestations being activated by different games and game types as well as research studying longitudinal negative cutaneous consequences of video gaming. Moreover, evidence is needed on excessive play and on defining what constitutes excess in the first place. Raising the level of awareness may encourage the video game industry to alter the structure of video-game-related devices and make it finger and thumb safe. The consumers also need to be thoroughly educated about the potential negative impact of excessive video gaming. Perhaps it is time to disconnect.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352646719301541?via%3Dihub

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Topics

Electrohypersensitivity

Geneva

Occupational Health

Millimeter Waves

Telehealth

3.5 GHz: Are health risks “unlikely” ?

The Well Being of Children

Robotics that could eventually fuse organic tissue with machines

Robotics and Cyber Security

Ionizing Radiation

Latest on the Havana Syndrome

Our April 2021 Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/emfsa/millimeter-waves

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