Wireless Burglar Alarms – Is There A Radiation Threat?

Posted by Lloyd on September 3, 2010 under EMFs in your home | Be the First to Comment

“I just purchased a wireless burglar alarm.  And now after reading about radiation from wireless devices, I’m not so sure it’s safe.  Could you please provide me some info about this?  I can’t seem to find info specific to wireless alarms.  I have no idea how much radiation, if any, is being released.  And, does the radiation come from the sensors or the panel?  Any specific info you could provide on this item would be much appreciated.  Thanks”

This is a question I recently received from, one of my readers.

I don’t know how you feel about this electrosmog/cell phone radiation/EMF issue but I just find the more time goes by, the more I interact with different people on this, the more I realize that electromagnetic radiation is a bigger problem for far more people than I ever could have realized.

If it wasn’t that sharp searing pain that overcame me that day back in February 2002 when I took my cell phone out of my pocket and answered it, as I had done so many other times, I wouldn’t be talking to you now. What I really try and impress on you and all the other people who follow my blog entries is that up to 2002 I was just an ordinary Joe going about my work with no health issues whatsoever. I was like 99.9% of the population I was totally ignorant to the dangers of cell phones and EMFs in our lives. And it’s not as if I live in cloud cuckoo land, I consider myself to be relatively well-informed on many subjects, I have a business degree and a professional qualification, I read a newspaper most days, I prefer radio to TV for the news, I have a broad circle of friends, and yet I had never heard of this thing.

Well this is exactly where we are on the subject of wireless burglar alarms; as Melanie has quite rightly identified, there is very little information, far less than there is on cell phone radiation. As much as I do firmly believe that most people remain ignorant to the dangers of cell phone radiation because the cell phone lobby is pulling the strings behind the curtain, I do not believe that this is the explanation for the lack of information and research on wireless burglar alarms.

What Are The Health Dangers Of Burglar Alarms?

The biggest danger is that your wireless burglar alarm is a wireless DECT burglar alarm. I guess for most of you when I say DECT (Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications) you have already got the picture. If your burglar alarm uses DECT technology then this means that in terms of personal electrosmog pollution it is on a par with a DECT cordless phone. You’ll recall that I’ve talked about the radiation from DECT cordless phones in earlier posts – these things are just as bad if not worse than cell phones in terms of radiation exposure. The reason I consider them so potentially harmful is that unlike a cell phone your cordless phone gives out electromagnetic radiation 24/7 in your home, even when you are sleeping. If you have a wireless DECT burglar alarm it’s exactly the same scenario, your home becomes a microwave radiation hotspot.

What Can Be Done?

Well you could just rip it all out, and if you think there is the slightest chance that you would be suffering adverse health effects from your wireless burglar alarm then I personally would not hesitate to do so. Much depends on your personal situation; if it’s more that you do not seem to be affected by this issue but are concerned by it, then I would suggest hiring an EMF meter or get an EMF technician in to establish what your exposure is. Then you can contact your burglar alarm installer to see about turning off the microwave transmitters in the sensors when you are in your home.

What Are The Other Dangers From Wireless Burglar Alarms?

The biggest danger in Burglar alarms generally and not just the DECT variety come from the poor quality transformers which are used in them which can give off high electromagnetic fields. The second biggest threat comes stems from the fact that the circuit wires are not earthed.

Here I would cite the sad case of Ray and Denise Studholmes’ little boy Simon.  Simon was diagnosed with leukemia in November 1990, nearly two years after the family moved to their three-bedroom home near Bolton, Greater Manchester.  As Simon slept, his head was less than 3ft from an electricity meter and a burglar alarm in a hall cupboard. He died in September 1992, aged 13. Simon’s parents have disclosed that tests after their son’s death revealed that the two appliances gave off an EMF more than six times more powerful than the recommended safe limit. Mr and Mrs Studholme believe that their son Simon would still be alive if he had not been subjected to the strong electromagnetic fields in his bedroom from the burglar alarm and electric meter.

In the case of Simon it would appear to be not just the burglar alarm. But then in most people’s homes they will not be subjected to just the burglar alarm, many people are generating electrosmog in their homes from cordless phones, WiFi, CFL lights, dirty electricity from electric wiring. Additionally they might be subjected to exterior generated electrosmog from a neighbor’s WiFi, or a nearby cell phone tower.

Wireless Burglar Alarms Unbearable For Some Electrosensitives

There are people with heightened electrical sensitivity which can even feel when a wireless burglar alarm is switched on.  Thankfully this is not my case and I hope it is not yours.

So I hope I’m making my point on this. I’m really not trying to scare monger, because the vast majority of burglar alarms rely on infra-red sensors which give off no significant EMFs. Again it’s really the cumulative effects which are important. Maybe it’s better for your health to buy yourself a guard dog instead!