Power Line Links To Cancer Rejected

Magnetic fields created by high-voltage power lines are unlikely to significantly increase the risk of cancer, researchers from Finland concluded in a study released Friday.

A nationwide study of 383,700 people found almost no difference in the incidence of cancer among adults living within 500 yards of overhead power lines when compared with the population as a whole.

The researchers said the results, published in the British Medical Journal, suggest strongly that typical magnetic fields generated by high-voltage power lines in residential areas “are not related to cancer in adults.”

Since 1979, public concern has been raised over the possible health effects of low-frequency electromagnetic fields emitted from power lines, transmitters and common household items such as computers, television sets, electric blankets, microwave ovens and cellular phones.