Electromagnetic Radiation what is it?

What is Radioactivity?

I have described both Electromagnetic Fields and Radiation at different points in this blog; I have given a lot of information concerning Electromagnetic Fields, but none on Electromagnetic Radiation bar what is immediately relevant. So this post will center on Electromagnetic Radiation, its effects and how it differs from Electromagnetic Fields.

To start with, Electromagnetic Radiation is a very specific form of Electromagnetic field, which is produced by many differing sources. The main source of cosmic background radiation is the electromagnetic radiation produced by the sun and other stars; however there are many more producers of electromagnetic radiation, most being fairly surprising household items, some of the producers are as follows.

• Television: A television produces a form of Electromagnetic radiation, this was briefly described in the post “How to protect yourself from electromagnetic stress”, the same type of Radiation wave is also produced by a computer screen.
• Radio-waves: The largest generator of Radio-waves in the current world is the cell phone, which can cause damage to minor cells by rapidly heating them.
• Infrared: Much like Radio-waves, Infrared waves heat cells they pass through.
• Ultraviolet Light: Ultraviolet rays are the main causers of Sunburn, which has been proven as one of the largest causers of skin cancer.
• X-rays: X-rays have been known to cause damage to reproductive cells, making it harder for the cells in your body to proliferate and recreate.

Each form of Radiation can be told apart via the length of the Radiation wave. As I mentioned earlier the Sun and many other Stars produce forms of electromagnetic radiation and the only thing stopping it from affecting us is our atmosphere. You see our atmosphere is made up of several layers, each of which block out various forms of cosmic radiation, the Ozone, for example, blocks out a large amount of ultraviolet radiation.

This won't happen trust me.

All electromagnetic radiation waves have differing effects on the human body; with most of the effects being incredible dangerous, if not deadly, I will list a few here:

• The Protein in your skin alters; Out of over 580 different proteins, multiple tests demonstrated 2 proteins were heavily altered over time.
• Many forms of Electromagnetic radiation that involve thermal energy can cause untold brain damage, steadily heating the smaller cells in the brain.
• Leukemia cells show signs of increased growth at a rapid rate when exposed to radiation.
• Brain tumors are shown to develop with more ease in irradiated environments.
• High levels of radiation can cause early mutations in undeveloped babies, leading to miscarriages.

In addition, the damage caused by Electromagnetic Radiation is far more immediate than that caused by Electromagnetic Fields, leading to being more closely monitored. Electromagnetic Radiation damages our bodies in several ways; certain Radiation waves cause your cells ability to repair themselves to fail, meaning that as damage is done to the cell, it cannot properly repair itself causing further cell degeneration. Other forms of Radiation block the electrical signals that travel between cells, which can lead to alterations in the way certain cells work by blocking or altering their receptors and therefore altering the nutrients and proteins sent to each cell.

An example of Infrared

In short, Electromagnetic energy is created when electrons or photons are accelerated to high speeds, and travel as waves. All levels of the electromagnetic spectrum are utilized in your day to day activities; however they are used at such low frequencies it would take generations of continuous exposure to damage your cells by even 1%, so there is no immediate need to panic.

• Radio-waves are used to send and receive information in the form of sound and images to your television or radio daily.
• Microwaves are one of the most efficient ways to cook food in a short period of time, in addition a mobile phone can produce microwaves when a phone call is made or received.
• Heat in all its forms is created via infrared radiation, so whenever two humans hug, there’s a burst of infrared radiation.
• Visible light radiation is another form of Electromagnetic energy, which is ever so slightly important, as it allows you to see.
• Without Ultraviolet radiation, most forensic sciences would not exist, as without Ultraviolet light, they would be unable to see key elements of some crime scenes, e.g. bodily fluids.
• X-rays are invaluable in medical science for obvious reasons, without them we would not be able to detect certain illnesses with the precision we currently can.
• Most full body scans used by hospitals utilize Gamma radiation to permeate the body and detect any anomalies, without them, most people would never be diagnosed.

As you can see, whilst electromagnetic radiation has the potential to be dangerous, it is also invaluable to human life, without it we wouldn't even be able to see! As an electromagnetic field is a static field that aids in the rapid spread of certain Radiation particles (Like Visible light radiation) we can also start to see how, whilst EMF’s have the potential to harm us, they also have the potential to help us. Electromagnetic Waves are, in a sense, the ultimate double edged sword.

I hope this has been informative and you have enjoyed reading.