Wi-Fi has become part of our daily lives and almost every home or place has a wifi connection available to connect to the wireless internet. When you are dealing with something that you do not see what the wifi connection actually is or even the reception of mobile phones can generate fear and many may ask, even legitimately, " it is not that these radio waves are bad"> If then in there is a child or baby at home, would it be better to turn off the wifi because it is dangerous or is there no problem for your health?
Basically, what we want to know is if the wifi, active 24 hours a day, can damage or constitute a danger for us, for a child and a newborn .
The answer to such a question, wanting to be precise and exact, could require several pages of reports that we cannot afford here.
The following explanation can therefore be very simplified to the experts and also present some intentional technical error.
However, I believe it is absolutely credible and clear (at the end of the article for the sources).
Radiation can be divided into two categories: ionizing radiation and non-ionizing radiation .
The ionizing ones are radiation capable of "breaking" the molecules that make up things.
These radiations are dangerous.
Examples of them are ultraviolet rays and nuclear radiation which not only generate heat, but also change the composition of the molecules of our body and modify the DNA of the cells, causing cancer.
The sun's UV radiation is also responsible for sunburn due to long unprotected exposure to the sun which damages the DNA of skin cells.
Non-ionizing radiation, on the other hand, passes through objects or is converted into heat when they hit them.
In practice, they are microwave radiation.
As we have learned in the past, among the ways to improve wireless network reception, routers and antennas must be far from microwave ovens because these can cause interference.
This is because Wi-Fi networks operate on the same frequency as the microwave oven and, like the latter, use non-ionizing radiation.
When the radiation of the wifi when they hit the objects, they do not change their coposition and the energy is converted into heat.
This heat is however such a small measure that it is not even measurable and, consequently, the wifi is not a danger and is harmless .
There are actually two factors that characterize the effects of electromagnetic radiation on living things: frequency and intensity .
The radiation that actually causes problems and that could also cause cancer or other diseases is ionizing radiation that has a very high frequency.
The minimum frequency of ionizing radiation is at least 1, 000, 000 GHz.
Wifi routers and wireless cell and computer receivers operate at a frequency 500, 000 times lower, i.e. 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz.
The wifi emits non-ionizing radiation which causes just a little heat.
Most paranoid people should know that light also emits radiation and the sun emits far more than wifi.
The Sun also emits dangerous ionizing radiation such as UV rays from which we must protect ourselves, but which certainly do not prevent us from leaving the house.
As mentioned before, in addition to the frequency, we must also consider the intensity, that is, the mode of exposure.
Non-ionizing radiation becomes harmful if the intensity is very high.
Wi-Fi has a very low transmission power which usually goes well below 1 watt and which decreases the further you go away from the transmitter until it becomes nothing after a few meters.
Microwave ovens (which operate on a frequency similar to Wi-Fi) transmit at a very high power, 1000 Watts, almost all concentrated inside.
Maybe only 1 Watt can be released through the shield.
The sunlight (which has a higher frequency) is around 1000 watts per square meter when it hits the ground.
Those who are cautious about Wi-Fi, could keep the router at a distance of one meter or more and not use the laptop on their knees to feel comfortable.
However the risk of Wifi is non-existent or, at least, it is lower than the risk of many other things that it would be better to worry about.
I would add that cell phones also emit non-ionizing radiation, but they are much higher than wifi.
If you really have to worry about the health of a child, a newborn or ours, it would be good not to be too close to a cell phone for a long time during a conversation or while downloading internet data using its 3G connection.
It was calculated from this study that one year of continuous exposure to wi-fi corresponds to a 20-minute phone call.
To deepen the discussion, for those who are really afraid that the wifi at home or that of the neighbor will hurt children, babies and cause us headaches or other health problems, you can also read the Italian report of the Higher Institute of Health on the dangers of electromagnetic radiation.
Other interesting articles are that of the Guardian, very documented, which avoids any danger of Wifi.
For this article, I also based on the answers given in two authoritative American forums: Superuser and Stackexchange.
To conclude, we cannot forget to mention that alleged disease called Electrosensitivity (ES) or Electrohypersensitivity (EHS).
According to Wikipedia, this is an unrecognized disease, perhaps due to stress or psychiatric problems of those who are afraid of electromagnetic fields.
NOTE: In this very delicate article, I have somewhat abandoned caution and I have taken sides openly and clearly that Wifi is absolutely not bad for the health of people and children.
In several other articles that are found on the internet (such as this one) it is written, in a well documented way, that wifi can instead be dangerous for children so much as to advise schools to remove it.
If you have corrections or comments to make for or against Wifi, do it as well, but in a calm and clear way (and without insulting myself).
