Studies on the effects of wowing with VDUs

Radiation and the unborn child by MARLENE BROWN

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ile design improvements have calmed many of the fears about health hazards

associated with the use of VDUs, there is still much controversy sur- rounding possible effects of radiation on the unborn child.

Over the last few years there have been many ancedotal reports of un- usual occurrences (clusters) of mis- carriages and birth defects, plus a handful of small-scale epidemiological studies into the subiect.

Confused research

More recent scientific reports suggest that very low frequency radiation emissions from VDUs could be bio- logically harmfl. Dr Jose Delgado of Madrid found in experiments in 1982

Abstract: Controversy rages as to the effects of‘VL)U radiation on the unborn child.

f~~th#ugh surzqs have shown more

u~~o~aliries in babies born to women who

use VL>Us than those who do not, both

t mpEo_yers and munufacttuers are loathe to take thefindings seriot&.

Kqwords: data processing, office uutomation, visual display units, ergonomics.

lvfarlene Brown is a technical journalist.

that certain pulsed magnetic fields -

vastly weaker than the Earth’s own natural magnetic field - altered the development of chick embryos. Now several researchers, working on health and safety topics in New York City, have reported that the waves and intensity of the magnetic fields being emitted from VDUs are identicai to those used in the Delgado experi- ment.

According to one of those scientific researchers, Dr Arthur Guy, director of the Bioelectromagnetics Research Laboratory at the University of Wash- ington’s School of Medicine in

Seattle, the magnetic field pulses from VDUs have fZr& similar characteris- tics to those used in Delgado’s experi- ments. But Guy also claimed there were more dissimilarities, especially in the pulse widths and their shapes.

However, even the so-called ‘Del- gado effect’ has been a topic of hot controversy within scientific circles. The findings have never been re- peated, apparently because Delgado used a particular wave form that does not come from VDUs.

On the other hand, even more recent findings come from Richard Tell, a physicist with the Environ- mental Protection Agency’s (EPA)

radiation laboratory in Las Vegas, Nevada. VDU research has already

proved emissions at up to 50 cm from screens and Tell measured time rates of change in the magnetic field to be in the same range as those used by

Delgado.

Against legislation

Some organizations in the USA, in- cluding the Computer Business Equipment Manufacturers Associa- tion (CBEMA), the American Bank- ing Association, the American Elec- tronics Association, the Air Transport Association and the Plmerican In- surance Association, have opposed all legislative attempts to regulate the use of VDUs in the workplace. CBEMA has 40 members including such big

names as IBM, Honeywell, Sperry, Texas Instruments and Apple.

‘We’ve looked at the radiation question and we just an’t condone legislation that asks for alternate work for women during their pregnancy, simply because there’s nothing unsafe about these machines’, a CBEMA spokeswoman said.

The National Institute for Occupa- tional Safety and Health (NIOSH) in 1981 and the Newspaper Guild in

WI 27 no 2 march 1985 001 l-684X)851020037-02$03.00 0 1985 Butterworth & Co (Publishers,? L.td. 37

1983, have acknowledged VDU-re- lated health risks such as eye strain and muscle fatigue but as yet there is no conclusive scientific evidence link- ing VDUs to pregnancy problems.

For legislation

The National Association of Working Women, better known as ‘9 to 5,’ has been campaigning against the health hazards of VDUs in use throughout the United States. According to 9 to 5, at least half the women who became pregnant while working on VDUs at an airline telephone reservations office in San Francisco since 1979, suffered miscarriages, stillbirths or premature deliveries, or saw their children come into the world with birth defects. 9 to 5 also released a six-month nationwide survey in which women who reported becoming pregnant since working with VDUs could claim only a 3 1.6% rate of normal, full-term delivery.

Karen Nussbaum, executive direc- tor of the group and president of the National Office Workers’ Union, calls the numbers ‘truly frightening’ and ‘shocking enough to demand imme- diate action’. Nussbaum recom- mends:

that NIOSH investigate the orga- nization where a cluster pregnancy problem was recently discovered, that NIOSH follow through a feasi- bility study of pregnancies among women workers, including VDU users, as soon as possible, that NIOSH set up a national tracking system to study patterns of VDU-related health problems across the US and suggest solu- tions.

According to NIOSH, based in Cin- cinnati, Ohio, research is now well under way.

The burst of public concern has galvanized NIOSH into action. Now it is planning a large epidemiological study of 2000 women who use VDUs plus 2000 who do not, to compare

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their reproductive outcome. The study will finish in 1988.

Dr Teresa Shnorr, of NIOSH, confirmed that since, 1980, there have been ten clusters reported in the USA and Canada, eight of which occurred in 1981-82. NIOSH is investigating three of those, and expects its reports to be published soon. One of the clusters concerns four women who worked on VDUs at the Toronto Star newspaper. Each gave birth to mal- formed babies.

However, for the time being, NIOSH is not recommending that pregnant women be moved away from VDUs. In Canada, the Ministry of Labour’s Task Force on Microelec- tronics and Employment has recom- mended interim rules for VDU work, which include the right to job transfer during pregnancy.

UK findings

In the UK, a study of pregnancies at DE Runcorn was undertaken by the Medical Advisory Service (MAS) and the results have been presented to the Council of Civil Service Unions. As a result, the Council has warned mem- bers who are pregnant not to work on VDUs until more detailed research has been carried through.

The Runcorn survey revealed that 36% of the pregnancies of women exposed to VDUs did not have a normal outcome, compared with 16% of those who were not exposed to VDUs. MAS argues that the ‘control’ group figures for miscarriage rates are abnormally high, pointing to a variety of other studies where miscarriage rates vary between about 10% and 15% of pregnancies in the population at large.

Despite the abnormally high figures, Dr Semmence of the Civil Service Unions, in London, is treat- ing the findings with some caution. ‘I do not think the survey carried any weight’, he said. One Harley Street gynaecologist at least believes that figures like 36% must carry weight, as

the normal rate of miscarriage is around 10%.

Denmark

Following a recent case in the Danish town of Aarhus, where eight out of ten pregnant women, working in a library and using VDUs, had mis- carriages, doctors there have already started a five-year survey.

Dr Cay Ole Larsen, of the Depart- ment of Occupational Health in Aar- hus, will lead the investigation, based on a suspicion that there may be a link between radiation, foetal damage and VDUs. Larsen said he hoped to have some concrete evidence after the first year. ‘Time is of the essence when assessing any health hazard such as this, so it is imperative we do this survey now, instead of ten years’ time when it might be too late’, he said.

The group to be observed will be members of Denmark’s largest office workers’ union, which has 80% female membership.

Manufacturers

The computer manufacturers have voiced their concern too. ICL UK proclaims that computers and their peripherals pose no threat to the health and safety of their users. An ICL representative preferred to quote Dr Cohn Mackay of MAS as saying: ‘The conclusions from these and all of the other surveys is that the very low levels of radiation which are occasion- ally detectable with the most sensitive instrumentation do not pose a hazard from VDUs, even when emission levels are compared with the most stringent of the international stand- ards.’

IBM UK claims that all current research in this controversial area has shown no connection between VDUs and birth defects. According to an IBM representative, ‘There is no reason for any person, male or female, young or old, to be concerned about radiological health effects from visual display terminals. ’ q

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