What Does It Mean When They Say EMF Affects Brain Waves?
Did you watch the YouTube video of Toronto Raptors star R.J. Barrett undergoing a brain scan while using a cell phone and wonder what the talk about brain waves meant?
During the test, Dr. Nicholas J. Dogris, Director of Neuro Therapy at Sun Health Center, administers an electroencephalograph (EEG) and brain activity visualization to test the effect of a LifeTune device from Aires that alters electromagnetic radiation (EMF) from cellphones and other electronics.
He explains what’s going on, but it might not come across clearly to those without a serious scientific background.
Recording Human Brain Wave Activity
Human beings experience five types of brain waves and need each in a balanced amount to properly function, according to Mental Health Daily. Too much activity or too little of any one type can throw off our thinking and processing abilities. The test Barrett underwent, an EEG, records each type of brain wave as it happens.
In the video, when they show the squiggly lines of various colors, those lines represent brain waves. The EEG assigns a different color of line to each brain wave, and the record of activity lets the doctor observe how much of each type of brain wave the test subject’s brain produces.
The Five Types of Brain Waves in Humans
A brainwave consists of an electrical pattern. Each of the five types of brain waves has a job.
Gamma occurs between the frequencies of 40 Hz to 100 Hz and handles learning, information processing, and memory. In perfect balance, gamma brain waves bind our senses to perception and handle cognition, information processing, learning, and REM sleep.
If a brain produces too many gamma waves, the person experiences stress, anxiety, and high arousal, but if it produces too few gamma waves, the person experiences learning disabilities, ADHD, and depression. Meditation naturally increases gamma waves.
Beta ranges from 12 Hz to 40 Hz in frequency and handles logic and conscious thought. A person’s beta waves enable them to focus on a specific task and complete it, such as homework or a project at work that requires reading and writing or socialization.
Similar to having too many gamma waves, too much beta activity causes adrenaline to spike, anxiety, high arousal, and stress. If a person has too few beta wave activities, they exhibit ADHD, depression, poor cognition, and may daydream. Drinking coffee or energy drinks that contain caffeine boosts the high-frequency, low-amplitude beta waves.
Alpha ranges from a frequency of 8 Hz to 12 Hz and provides us with the ability to relax. They form the in-between waves of high focus (gamma and beta) and sleep (theta and delta). When the human body experiences too many alpha waves, the person becomes too relaxed and slips into a daydream state, unable to focus on tasks.
When the human brain makes too few alpha waves, the person may experience a combination of anxiety, stress, insomnia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Drugs like alcohol and marijuana increase alpha waves, as do some antidepressants and muscle relaxants.
Theta waves range from a frequency of 4 Hz to 8 Hz, and these slow waves help us feel emotions deeply, daydream, and sleep. When a person experiences too much theta activity, they slip into a semi-hypnotic state that leaves them suggestible. They may develop depression, ADHD, or hyperactivity and experience inattentiveness and impulsivity.
Too little theta activity reveals itself through stress, anxiety, and a lack of emotional awareness. When the brain makes just the right amount of theta waves, it provides the person’s creativity and intuition, and helps a person relax and enjoy restorative sleep. Depressants, like alcohol, increase theta waves.
Delta waves, the slowest waves, occur at frequencies ranging from 0 Hz to 4 Hz, and they handle relaxation and deep sleep. As babies and in childhood, humans experience more delta wave activity. Although its production slows as we age, we produce delta waves in our deepest sleep. It regulates essential bodily functions like the immune system, digestion, and heartbeat and has been linked to empathy.
People with brain injuries may experience too many delta waves. People whose brains generate too much delta activity while awake experience learning issues, severe ADHD, and an inability to think or reason.
When a brain produces too few delta waves, the person doesn’t sleep well, which leads to an inability to refresh the body and brain. When the brain makes the right amount of delta waves, a person sleeps well and exhibits strong natural healing. Depressants, like alcohol, increase delta waves, but so does sleeping too much.
