As the mother of three children – with thinner skulls, higher water content in their skulls (= higher conductivity) and undeveloped immune systems – it is very important to find out what levels of microwave RF radiation my kids are being exposed to, so that I can take measures to protect them where needed.

So the first component of protecting your kids from wireless radiation involves testing and measuring their daily environment for WiFi signal strength – school, home, dance or gymnastics studio, friends’ houses, etc. Anywhere your kids spend over an hour continuously should be tested (in my opinion) so at least you can get a good idea of their daily radiation exposure.

Baubiologie – standard Building Biology testing methods – lists RF safety readings in the home (especially in sleeping areas) in the following manner:

No Concern – less than 0.10 microwatts/m2 (microwatts per meter squared)

Slight Concern – 0.10 – 10 microwatts/m2-

Severe Concern – 10 – 1000 microwatts/m2

Extreme Concern – greater than 1000 microwatts/m2

Magda Havas PhD recommends that (especially for children) microwave radiation levels do not exceed 0.10 microwatts/cm2 (per centimetre squared) and indoor areas do not exceed .001 microwatts/cm2. In my teleseminar with her, she said:

“We did a study just last– a few years ago, itʼs just coming out this year, where we tested the response of the heart to microwave radiation and the arc exposure was 0.3 microwatts/cm2, so itʼs 3 times higher than that guideline that I just mentioned – and several of the people we tested blindly, so it wasnʼt a psycho-somatic response, they developed tachycardia which is a rapid heart rate and arrhythmia instantly as soon as we exposed them to the radiation from a cordless phone at 2.4 GHz. So, if adults start having those symptoms and I know quite a few adults who have them, they suddenly feel; their heart starts beating, they have this pressure and pain in the chest area, theyʼre having an anxiety attack, thatʼs how the interpret it, or theyʼre having a heart attack and they donʼt know which and it scares them incredibly. Well, children are now beginning to have these problems.”

Once you know what you’re dealing with, then you can take steps to reduce or eliminate their radiation load – I’ll get into all that in a separate article. For now, let’s just look at what RF meters are on the market, at what price, and what each of them do to measure wifi signal strength – so that you can find the right one for your needs and budget.

As a mom, you’ll likely want to test primarily for:

The Main Differences Between Meters

The main distinctions between the different types of meters (and hence the price) usually boils down to 3 specifications:

If you can’t be bothered to read through the detailed meter descriptions below and you just want to know: What’s the cheapest, easiest meter that can measure pretty much everything? Then this Cornet 8 GHZ RF Meter (Uni-directional $179.90 + free shipping) will cover all your needs. This meter is much cheaper than the Tenmars below because it only measures radiation coming from one direction, whereas the Tenmars meter below measures radiation coming from all sides. This meter also only measures electrical and RF, wheras the Tri-Field measure magnetic fields as well. However, if price is key, then this is a very good choice, since it measures all RF devices (cell phones, cordless phone, WiFi, surveillance bugs, microwave ovens, etc.) from 1 MHz – 8 GHz. If you want the full-service radiation meter, so that you can measure everything in every situation, from one spot, then the Tenmars 8 GHZ RF Meter (3-directional, $345 + free shipping) is your best choice.

Here’s an In-Depth Description of the Various Radiation Meters and their Pros and Cons:

Handy Meter ($159.95) – This meter will measure radiofrequencies from cell towers, smart meters, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and other wireless/cordless transmitters, as well as low frequency magnetic and electric fields from power lines, circuit boxes, lighting and appliances. This one only measures up to 100 microwatts/cm2, so there is a problem using in North America where our upper “safety” limit is 1000 microwatts/cm2 – you’ll know it’s unsafe, but you won’t know how bad it is.

This one is also only single-axis, so you’ll have the tedium of having to measure at 8 different points/directions around in a complete circle – pausing at each new point to let it pick up the new reading – to get an idea of what radiation exists in any one spot. The good part about this meter is that it will give you the actual meter reading (e.g. 18 mW/m2) PLUS give you the color-coded ranges of safe/green-caution/yellow-unsafe/red.

This meter covers 50 Hz – 8 GHz – so it will give you readings for most cell phones, wireless computers and cell towers. The newer generation of cordless phones and other technology on the 5.8 GHz frequency will also be picked up by this meter. More details here… (scroll down the page)

Pocket PF5 Meter ($159.95) – Another really simple meter – but this ONLY measures electric and magnetic fields, which is either a beneficial feature, or a confusing one – depending on your needs.

The PF5 measures electric and magnetic EMFs from house wiring, including those from appliances at home or at work, covering frequencies from 20 Hz to well over 50 kHz. This enables the PF5 to measure the higher frequency electric and magnetic fields emitted by induction cooking hobs, solar-panel inverters, ‘energy-saving’ compact fluorescent (CFL) lamps and LED lights.

This one gives readings and has different colored lights: green-safe, yellow-caution, and red-unsafe.

Electric fields range is 5 – 200 V/m and magnetic fields range: 0.2 – 20 mG, It is also really small (pocket sized) making it easily portable – which again, may be a positive or a negative, depending on what you want it for. More details here… (scroll down the page)

ESI 24 EMF Monitor ($159.95) – This meter detects and displays all 3 EMF types at once: magnetic fields, electric fields, and radiowaves/microwaves simultaneously. It is fairly simple to interpret (there are red/yellow/green LED lights) – these lights indicate EMF level and are supported by a loudspeaker that gives an audible indication of field strengths. Sound frequency/intensity changes with increasing field strengths, but sound can be turned off if you like.

This meter allows for quick and easy localization of the sources of different types of EMF. The display shows 5 different levels, ranging from extremely low (i.e. no significant radiation exposure) to too strong for prolonged exposure and distinguishes how much for each radiation type. Super easy and super sensitive.

Electric fields range is 16Hz – 3kHz, magnetic fields range is 16Hz – 3kHz, and radiowave range is 50MHz – 10GHz.

More details here… (scroll down the page)

Trifield Meter MODEL TF2 ($168.00) – As you move up the price scale, you’ll notice you get more features and more accuracy. This meter is a 3-axis meter rather than a single-axis, like the meter above. This means that you don’t need to rotate around, but can simply stand in one spot and the meter will scan 360 degrees around you to give you the complete/total radiation level for that particular spot.

This meter will test EMF pollution from “hot spots” in your home, office, or work environment so you can take steps for “prudent avoidance”. It’s completely self-contained, so no parts to lose. You get 3 meters in one – three axis for magnetic and extremely wide frequency response.

This is actually an updated version of their original trifield model. Here are some of the upgrades:

This meter will also give you the actual radiation level, and measures up to 1000 microwatts/cm2. US and Canada upper allowable limit is 1000 microwatts/cm2.

This meter covers 20 MHz- 6 GHz – so it will give you readings for most cell phones, wireless computers and cell towers. The newer generation of cordless phones and other technology on the 5.8 GHz frequency will also be picked up by this meter. More details here…

6 GHZ RF Meter (Uni-directional $119 + free shipping) – This meter is very reasonably priced and will measure 100 HHz – 6 GHz. It also measures electrical fields (power lines etc.) The only downside is that it is uni-directional only (not a tri-field meter). This means that you will have to rotate slowly in a circle, stopping and pausing at each point to get a measure of total radiation for any one spot. On the other hand, it makes it easy to pinpoint which direction the radiation is coming from! More details here…

8 GHZ RF Meter (Uni-directional $179.90 + free shipping) – This meter is much cheaper than the the Tri-Field below because it only measures radiation coming from one direction, whereas the Tri-Field meter below measures radiation coming from all sides. This meter measures electrical, RF, and magnetic fields as well. So if price is key, then this is a very good choice, since it measures all RF devices (cell phones, cordless phone, WiFi, surveillance bugs, microwave ovens, etc.) from 1 MHz – 8 GHz. More details…

8 GHZ RF Meter (Tri-Field, $345 – free shipping) – This meter is 3-axis (no need to rotate), it measures from .0001 microwatts/cm2 up to 3,000 microwatts/cm2 and it covers from 10 MHz – 8 GHz – so it will measure every wireless device around (including surveillance bugs!), plus leaving room for future technology developments. This meter also measures electrical fields. For the informed layperson (like myself) this is probably the best combination of needed features and ease of use.

The downside is that this meter ships from Israel, so your shipping time is going to be a bit longer on this one (about 2 weeks). BUT the great thing is, the shipping is free! I have ordered from this company myself to test and everything went smoothly and the meter arrived in 2 weeks. As I said above, if you want to be able to test EVERYTHING, with ease – because this measures the radiation coming from all directions (tri-field), so you don’t have to keep turning and re-measuring, until you’ve measured a full circle – you can just stand in one spot, facing any direction and it will measure ALL the radiation coming from every direction to that spot – then this is the meter to get. More details here…

For people who need to get more specific, there are more complicated meters for this, but of course, they are also much more expensive (thousands of dollars).

You can also check with your local (or country’s) citizen action group as some have meters they will rent to you for a fraction of the purchase price – if they don’t have meters for rent, be sure and suggest this to them!

Here’s also a list of helpful resources to get you started:

Note: All prices listed are correct at time of writing, but of course, are subject to change.

Detailed Techie Questions?

Please note that I am not an engineer, nor an expert in this technology. I am just trying to figure things out for my own family and then sharing what I learn as I go along. So if you have any specific questions about RF Meters or anything technical, please speak to one of the sellers of this equipment (who I link to above), like Emil:

Emil DeToffol

We received some new questions about this recently:

QUESTION: My 10 year old son and I have been reading your website because he is doing research for a science fair project.  I need to purchase him a meter that gives him quantitative data for how much cell phone radiation occurs with a variety of phones.  He will compare his data and present for the science fair.  By no means, does this have to be 100% accurate, but he must give a good estimate and be knowledgable about the subject.  I have seen the Cornet ED-75 as the one to get.  I’m personally confused on the different meters out there after reading multiple sources.  Could you help by letting us know from your experience which one would be the best, but not the most expensive?

ANSWER:  The Handy meter or Trifield model above would measure the full range of cellphones, and he can point it at the cell phone antenna to get the reading. I suggest he also measure cordless phones as many are very surprised that they can emit more than a cell phone (especially the 5.8 GHz ones). The ED-75 only goes up to 6 GHz, so it cannot measure some of the cellphones on the market.

QUESTION: If I bought a uni-directional radiation meter, how would I calculate how much radiation a certain spot is being exposed to by the surrounding area? You mentioned starting north and turning the meter 15 degrees until it’s gone full circle. But then what do I do with the data to get an estimate of the amount of radiation in that spot? Do I add all the readings together or take the highest one?

ANSWER:  You just take the highest reading – because whatever side of your body is being exposed to that high level, doesn’t really matter – you are still being exposed to it and that’s the highest radiation that’s coming to that spot in the room.

Original post April 2011. Most recently updated July 2020.

Join Natasha Trenev, founder/owner of Natren probiotics, and me as we discuss safety concerns around kombucha. Did you know that kombucha is fermented using a yeast culture? Natasha shares a news story of 20 people who died from drinking their home-fermented kombucha…

We also have a great little scientific study on problematic issues with taking Saccharomyces Boulardii – another yeast organism.

If you’d like the details and scientific explanation, here’s a great tutorial on exactly what happens during fermentation.

Lastly, we field some more great questions from Deb, Robert, Erica, Kiran, Desiree, Patsy, Brooke and Tiffany – about SIBO, diarrhea, probiotic retention enema, enteric-coatings, E. coli Nissle 1917, gut flora as you age, inflammation, and more!

Or listen/download the audio of this session:

You can either watch the video, or listen/download the audio – it’s great drive-home material!

If you have any further questions, just post them below in the Comments section.

This is the final installment of this 3-part, in-depth series on probiotics, dosing, usage, etc. with Natasha Trenev and I.

In case you missed it, here is PART 2

And here is PART 1

Enjoy!

Find out what’s wrong with using enteric-coated capsules for probiotics.

And why the culturing substrate (intrinsic supernatant) is so important to the functioning of the bacteria inside your body, and directly benefits your digestion.

Learn about competitive exclusion; the nature of bacteria is mutual antagonism – they produce compounds to compete with any other bacteria in their environment. This environment could be a pill, a bottle, or your gut.

Did you know that if you culture your own yogurt – using a powerful starter culture like Natren’s – that yoghurt will contain about 100 million c.f.u per serving? By comparison, Natren’s Healthy Trinity contains 30 billion c.f.u. per dose. Join us for this talk to discover why we need so much more beneficial bacteria today then 50 or 60 years ago.

Or listen/download the audio of this session:

In this week’s session, Natasha Trenev and I answer questions from Nellie, Brooke, Patsy, Edie, Chris, Desiree, Sarah, Wendy, Terry and Robert. You can either watch the video, or listen/download the audio – it’s great drive-home material!

If you have any further questions, just post them below in the Comments section.

If you enjoyed this, then join Natasha and I for the final installment of this 3-part, in-depth series on probiotics, dosing, usage, etc. Watch or listen to PART 3 here.

And in case you missed it, here is PART 1

Lots of practical advice on HOW to use Natren therapeutic probiotics with questions from readers with IBD; Crohn’s, colitis, and IBS. Learn when to take powders vs. capsules, how much and WHY the different delivery methods work well for different conditions.



Or listen/download the audio of this session:

If you have any further questions, just post them below in the Comments section.

If you enjoyed this, then join Natasha and I for the next installment of this 3-part, in-depth series on probiotics, dosing, usage, etc. Watch or listen to PART 2 here.

What’s wrong with eating raw foods? And how are bacteria just like horses??

Fascinating deep dive into the healthy gut microbiome and fermented foods with world-renowned probiotic expert, Natasha Trenev, and me:

“I’m only 12 minutes in, and this is already the most lucid and accurate explanation of the ecology of gut microbiome I’ve heard discussed. It’s rare to hear even practitioners discuss the species involved as organisms, in a true ecological sense of interaction with each other and their host and shuffling for space and resources that comes with that… and the consequences to our bodies under different stages of distress.

If I take a deep breath when you ask me about fermented foods, or dumping a pile of probiotics in your shake after a round of Cipro, or start explaining why you’re having a histamine reaction after your friend told you to start slamming back Kombucha like its soda pop… watch this.”

And if audio in your car, or on your iPod is more your style, you can listen to or download the mp3 audio here:

If you have any further questions for Natasha or me – just leave them in the Comments section below!

And if you’d like the details and scientific explanation, here’s a great tutorial on exactly what happens during fermentation.

If you enjoyed this, then join Natasha and I for further discussions in this 3-part, in-depth series on probiotics, dosing, usage, etc.

We also answer a lot of great questions from readers. PART 1 starts here.

Here’s a little story from Dr. Goldberg for you, to kick off this topic:

“We had a 47-year-old female patient, who following the advice of her Holistic, Functional Gynecologist, had a complete hysterectomy, plus a bilateral mastectomy based only on having the BRCA II gene. This was followed by a year of Diflucan  prescribed by a local Naturopath and being placed on Thyroid Replacement Therapy because her T3 level was one point below normal. She now has silicone breast implants to boot. Pretty frightening, all in the name of being ‘natural’. We are increasingly seeing this type of scenario.”

Dr. Paul Goldberg specializes in chronic disease reversal and healed himself of severe rheumatoid arthritis and ulcerative colitis in his twenties. Now in his sixties, he continues to experience robust health, but his daily supplement list consists of nothing more than a multi-vitamin. WHY? Because his daily, normal life supports the innate healing ability of the human body.

We talk about some of these “common sense measures” in this teleseminar. And I have to say, it gave me a tremendous feeling of hope and vision for something I have believed in and promoted for a long time. As Dr. Goldberg says:

“Odd how we are expected to conduct large scale, double-blind, case control studies on the employment of sunlight, fasting, liquid diets, emotional counseling, extended rest and sleep, pulling people off poisonous habits (e.g. drugs, alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, etc.) – what we view as common sense measures. Also, a great deal of time is given to each patient and effort is made to sort out etiological (disease-causing) factors.”

For example, did you know that 1/3 of female patients are on thyroid hormone replacement – without the effort to first find out why the thyroid is unbalanced and employ natural corrective measures – and that it can take as little as 1 year (and as long as 7 years) of even natural or bio-identical thyroid supplementation for your own thyroid gland to atrophy and cease functioning? So how ‘natural’ are bio-identical hormones and dessicated pig thyroid (Armour Thyroid) if they cause your own thyroid gland to cease functioning?

Having done two in-depth teleseminars on balancing hormones, this call really hit home for me in a number of areas – listen in and you’ll find out why and no doubt have a few ‘eureka’ moments yourself! Just click the PLAY button, or download it:

Did you also know that in order to get your Vitamin D from sunlight, you shouldn’t shower for an hour afterwards – your body needs that fatty sweat layer to convert the sunlight to cholecalciferol?

LOTS more gems in this call and hopefully you will feel empowered with renewed faith in the healing ability of your own body.

You can reach Dr. Goldberg directly at the GoldbergClinic.com or post your questions in the Comments section here below.

Back in June, I was woken up out of a dead sleep with RANCHO LA PUERTA sounding in my head and the words written out in my mind’s eye. What the what? Write it down.

So I wrote down: Rancho La Puerta. And immediately went back to sleep. In the morning I googled it and turns out it’s a famous health spa that’s been around since the ’40’s – who knew?! So of course I booked to visit there in September for 4 nights.

Rancho La Puerta – Tecate, Mexico

One of the main draws of this health spa is the non-stop activities from 6:30 am – 7:00 pm; from cross-fit to pilates and everything in between. Perusing the list, my gut drew me to the Feldenkrais classes, offered twice a day. I booked into those, along with 1 private session with the instructor, Donna Wood.

My gut leading was interesting to me, because I had a series of 10 private Feldenkrais sessions (where the practitioner just worked on me) about 15 years ago and it was nice, but nothing remarkable.

However, as I experienced that week, the difference with the group sessions is the instructor gives the group verbal instructions only. She won’t demo anything, as the point is for you to explore and find it within your own body. And THAT is what I found so powerful; learning the dialogue and conversations between the different parts of my body.

Spending 45 minutes learning how to lift my hip using only a foot pressing lightly into the floor with a slight forward movement of the knee – virtually no effort at all. And voila, my shoulders are now lying flatter on the floor! And more importantly, STAYED that way for 2 weeks until I did 7 non-stop hours of manual labor out at my barn.

Donna Wood – Feldenkrais Maestro

So I don’t know if it was Feldenkrais in the group session (vs private) that was so remarkable – or the instructor. Donna Wood is also a sculptor, black belt in Judo and Capoeira and dancer. So I suspect – like all therapies – that the practitioner plays a huge role in the experience/learning of this healing technique.

You can share the benefits!

Donna has SO generously provided 24 amazing Feldenkrais lessons you can practice at home – at no charge! I really encourage you to give this bodywork method a try and see what your body has to say about it. The brilliant thing about these Feldenkrais sessions from Donna is that you don’t need to have access to a computer – as they are audio-guided sessions.

As I mentioned, Donna will not demo anything for you – even in a live session. YOUR body has to explore and discover the movement that feels good, that feels easy, that feels delicious. So being guided by these audios is very similar to what you’d experience in a live class with Donna – you just can’t peek to see what the other people around you are doing! The other difference is that in a live session Donna will tailor the class to the people present. There are thousands of Feldenkrais lessons, so if Donna sees that your knee is in trouble (she is able to just scan people’s bodies and see where the difficulties are), and someone else’s neck is really stiff, then she will tailor the class to help those people. So if you’re in San Diego (or visiting), definitely contact her to join in some of her live classes!

I have grabbed the audio off each of her YouTube videos for you, so you can simply load them onto your mp3 player or iPod/iPhone and away you go. Here they are:

Donna Wood Feldenkrais – Lesson 1 – DOWNLOAD MP3

Donna Wood Feldenkrais – Lesson 2 – DOWNLOAD MP3

Donna Wood Feldenkrais – Lessons 3-9 – DOWNLOAD Zipped File

I would LOVE to hear from you, after you’ve done about 4-5 of these sessions and see if this bodywork is as transformative for you as it was for me.

I would also be interested to hear from people who’ve already attended Feldenkrais classes with a different instructor – and then tried 3 or 4 of these sessions with Donna. HOW much difference does the instructor make? It would be cool to share our experiences, so don’t be shy! Just post in the Comments section below.

Some of you may have seen this short video already – I created it years ago as a resource for people to watch whenever they were feeling down, discouraged, or when it seemed like their Healing Journey was taking forever. I just re-formatted it and uploaded it to YouTube so it’s easier to watch and share.

As a bonus gift to continue this process, I’m also giving away the MP3 Audio of my teleseminar with Dr. Gabor Mate – the bestselling author of When The Body Says No.

You can download the teleseminar here (right-click and save as…)

Or just click the PLAY button below:

Enjoy!