The month of August is here!

Just returned from lush green, rainy and pristine rural Ethiopia where we - the Kenyan team - joined a regional team of passionate agro-ecological practitioners whose mandate is to build capacity for farmers, in mountainous and rural areas, to embrace safer organic farming practices, as part of Nutrition Sensitive Agriculture(NSA).

• One may ask what does WiFi, mobile phones and microwave radiation have to do with organic agriculture and cancer? Everything, I would say…and here is why.
• At the local scene, there are increasing cases of cancers, with breast cancer leading in “morbidity”- number of cases, while colon cancer is the leading in “mortality”- that is, it results in most deaths. This has been brought to the public limelight from cancer deaths of prominent personalities in Kenya. Here: https://www.nation.co.ke/news/Personalities-cancer-has-snatched-away/1056-5215524-syrmdb/index.html
• Against the above background, there is renewed interest in identifying the unknown or less known potential risk factors that, collectively, may be contributing to the increasing cases of cancer. Recent evidence demonstrates that electromagnetic fields/frequencies may have a cumulative cancer causing effect; Here is recent evidence, albeit controversial. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=15&v=d9B688uSaTs
• From a public health and epidemiological point of view, this evidence is adequate to necessitate the application of the precautionary principle, on safety. The increasing deployment of the 5 Generation phones(5G) is especially worrying from a safety point of view. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=15&v=d9B688uSaTs
• Is there any evidence that microwaves may damage food and by extension damage human health? Yes. There is an increasing body of knowledge that microwaves are harmful: https://www.naturalhealth365.com/microwaves-emf-pollution-2829.html
• What is the link between electromagnetic radiation, radio frequencies and use of microwaves in heating, thawing or warming food? Here are 10 reasons why one should avoid using microwaves, including their increased risk factor, for abnormal atomic and molecular vibration causing aberrations and new “unnatural” products that may trigger cancer. https://www.health-science.com/microwave-hazards/
• Listen to this expert, Dr. Barnie Trower, now retired, who was part of the initial microwave experimentation. He warns against use of microwaves, especially around schools and children. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=740&v=z99_SzoXZdY
• Is there more evidence that microwaves can cause health damage and therefore constitute a food safety concern? Here is more evidence: https://www.naturalhealth365.com/microwaves-emf-pollution-2829.html
• Evidence that microwaving or pan frying meat may create nitrodiethanolamines and other carcinogenic nitrosamines, which are confirmed carcinogens. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4472216/

What is the way forward?

• There is need to reduce the multifactorial risk factors which are associated with non-communicable diseases (NCDs) including cancers. This can be achieved by reducing exposure to environmental toxins, including all forms of electromagnetic fields.
• These environmental toxins include; heavy metals, synthetic agrochemical residues, bisphenol A, aflatoxin and carcinogenic additives used in industrial food processing.
• Make an informed choice to “microwave” food or not before it is consumed.
• Finally, promote agroecological organic principles and practices, in farming and food consumption, to reduce exposure to agrochemical toxins, on the one hand and on the other hand discourage the use of microwaves. Using meat as an example, meat heated in a microwave may generate carcinogens, including nitrosamines: These toxins may denature the food or result in release of toxic products, like nitrodiethanolamine, a known carcinogen! https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4472216/