I have never been very fond of watching TV, so I never sat for more than a few hours a week in front of a TV. For years now I use an LCD screen with my computer.
Recently I discovered I must somehow be allergic to TV screens, because we started played computergames on the Nintendo. After some time I get an itchy face. Then, if I don't take a break, it will start hurting like when you have a sunburn. I found it very strange, so I looked it up on the Internet and found out that I might have a mild form of 'Electro Allergy'. Now of course I am looking for a cure or a way to avoid the symptoms and yet being able to play Nintendo games (we just managed to buy a Wii! btw in the Wii manual it is mentioned that you could get itches in the face, it says you should take a break if that happens).
My first question would be: Would it help to buy an LCD or a plasma TV? I can't find the answer to this question on the Internet. I don't seem to be sensitive to other electric devices, only noticed it while sitting in front of the TV screen for a long time. Do I have to be careful, can it easily get worse?
Anybody out there who knows something about this?
Posted by ginette (Member # 852) on :
Oh.. now I forgot the other question Strange question maybe: Suppose my partner has been sitting in front of a TV screen for hours and hours, and the next thing he does is kissing me...Could he somehow be charged with the radiation I am allergic to? Because sometimes it itches like crazy when he does that...
Posted by ClaudiaTherese (Member # 923) on :
ginette, there is no medically recognized "electro allergy" or allergy to TV screens. Of course, there is a lot of information online about diagnoses which are not recognized by the medical establishment, and one can (many do!) argue about what they do and do not represent.
I just wanted to make sure you knew this part of it, too.
And regardless, hope you find a way to feel better soon. Posted by ricree101 (Member # 7749) on :
I've never heard of this sort of allergy before. I'm a little curious about it, do you have any good sources for it? I tried googleing for it, but I didn't see anything more than some vague complaints about "electromagnetic radiation". I'm especially curious what frequencies would be causing a reaction, and why this doesn't occur with normal light.
Posted by erosomniac (Member # 6834) on :
It's also possible that tube TVs emit a gas or something similar that could be causing the reaction.
Or it may not be possible. I know absolutely nothing about it; just throwing that out there.
Posted by ginette (Member # 852) on :
Thanks CT, I am quite aware of that
Hi ricree101, I guess I have to send you to Sweden Swedisch organisation for ES They do have English pages Posted by ClaudiaTherese (Member # 923) on :
quote:Originally posted by ginette: Thanks CT, I am quite aware of that
Noted. *smile
Good luck, and let us know if you find something that works for you, okay?
Posted by Alcon (Member # 6645) on :
Electro allergy? That doesn't make any sense. The radiation a TV emits is no different from the radiation an LCD emits or the Sun emits. If you were allergic to electromagnetic radiation you'd be dead. If you're allergic to a particularly frequency then you're still likely to run into in more places than just sitting in front of a TV. That still doesn't really make sense.
I mean, unless you have a gene that creates a protein in your skin that resonates with a certain frequency of radiation... I suppose maybe then... hmmm... I wonder what sort of studies have been done on this?
Posted by ginette (Member # 852) on :
I don't know erosomniac, could be but I found nothing like that until now.
Alcon, maybe you'd find this article interesting. It is on the side I linked to earlier in this thread. Sweden was the first country to acknowledge that something like electro sensitivity is a disease. If you're interested, you can find more information on that site.
What I did found out though, on other sites I have visited, that it appears to be that 1.5% of the population is affected by electro sensitivity but that it is found more in people that also suffer from other stress syndroms. I have to say that I (have had?) PTSS. I guess it's a combination of the neurological system and the skin cells that causes the allergic reaction. And yes, I do think it must have something to do with the frequency of the radiation.
Posted by Alcon (Member # 6645) on :
That still doesn't much make sense. The frequencies emitted by a TV screen and the frequencies emitted by an LCD are in the same part of the spectrum. They're both in the visual band, which is a very narrow band of the EM spectrum. Basically they are colors. The chances that the TV screen emits a color that your LCD doesn't are slim to none. The only thing I can figure is that the LCD is a much more low powered device than the TV. And perhaps the intensity of the radiation emitted by an LCD just isn't enough to give you a reaction in the time you spend in front of it.
Do you get the same reaction from a CRT computer display?
Posted by ricree101 (Member # 7749) on :
Obviously, it is unlikely that the problems would be caused be the visible light if this only happens with the TV. Does anyone know how much EM radiation TVs tend to give off outside of the visible spectrum.
Posted by ginette (Member # 852) on :
I don't know Alcon, have been using LSD screens with my computer for a long time now. And the strange thing is, I did of course watch TV sometimes, but never noticed a reaction. Until we went to play Zelda games and sat there for hours and hours. And now that I have that reaction, I have to keep away from the TV screen, it gets worse and worse if I deny it.
Posted by ginette (Member # 852) on :
Ok, here is another link that might answer some of the questions.
Posted by ricree101 (Member # 7749) on :
quote:Originally posted by ginette: Ok, here is another link that might answer some of the questions.
I didn't see any references cited, and they're trying to sell a product. I'm a little wary of that site.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)