Research into non-ionising fields
The Interagency Committee on the Health Effects of Non-Ionising Fields monitors research into extremely low frequency and radiofrequency electric and magnetic fields.
On this page
About the committee
The Interagency Committee on the Health Effects of Non-Ionising Fields reports to the Director-General of Health. Membership includes representatives from:
- government
- industry
- academic groups
- consumer groups.
The committee meets every 6 months and looks at:
- papers on key research topics
- research reviews published by national and international health bodies.
The committee prepares occasional reports to ministers to provide them with:
- background information
- a current summary of research findings.
The most recent was published in June 2022.
At its most recent meeting, the committee concluded that there was no new research that would lead it to propose any changes to current ministry recommendations.
International research
Internationally, there is a lot of research into the possible health effects of electromagnetic fields. This includes both extremely low frequency fields and radiofrequency fields.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is investigating possible health effects of electromagnetic fields. This includes:
- low frequency fields from power lines and other electrical equipment and cabling
- radiofrequency fields from radio transmitters.
International EMF Project — World Health Organizationexternal link
WHO published a review of the research on low frequency electric and magnetic fields and health in June 2007. They also prepared a fact sheet summarising the findings of the review.
Extremely low frequency fields — World Health Organizationexternal link
Exposure to extremely low frequency fields — World Health Organizationexternal link
WHO is currently preparing a review on radiofrequency fields and health.
The EMF-Portal is maintained by the University Hospital Department of Aachen University.
It contains a summary of research publications on extremely low frequency and radiofrequency fields and health. It is updated regularly.
There is a lot of ongoing research into the possible health effects of radiofrequency fields.
Many reviews of the research in this area have been published over the past few years.
These reviews conclude that, overall, the results show that exposures that comply with current limits do not cause health effects. Nor has any mechanism been established through which such exposures could cause effects.
On the other hand, further research is needed in some areas (for example, mobile phone use for more than 20 years) to provide greater certainty.
Some recent reviews are listed below. Some of these (such as the Swedish reviews) are shorter and less technical than others. The more complex reports include summaries of their findings and conclusions.
Reviews
As part of the International EMF Project, the WHO commissioned systematic reviews of the health effects research in several key areas. A systematic review uses transparent, reproducible methods to retrieve and evaluate the research and form conclusions. These reviews were published in Science Direct in 2024 and 2025.
Systematic reviews — ScienceDirectexternal link
The Health Council of the Netherlands published an English version of their report on 5G and Health in November 2020.
5g and health — Health Council of the Netherlandsexternal link
In February 2020 the United States Food and Drug Administration published a review of the research carried out between 2008 and 2018 on possible effects of radiofrequency fields on cancer development. This review is available on EMF-Portal.
The French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) published an English summary of their 2018 report on electromagnetic hypersensitivity. There is also an English summary of their 2016 review of research on children's health and exposure to radiofrequency fields.
The Scientific Committee on Health, Environmental and Emerging Risks (SCHEER) released their Final Opinion on the need of a revision of the annexes in the Council Recommendation 1999/519/EC and Directive 2013/35/EU. This Opinion provides extensive research into the health effects of radiofrequencies and electromagnetic fields.
The Swedish Radiation Safety Authority Scientific Council on Electromagnetic Fields prepares an annual review of new research. The most recent review was published in February 2026.