In the Dark

In the Dark

Did you know wireless technologies come with health warnings? Will there be class actions against smartphone manufacturers from sick phone-users who believe their illnesses to be a result of their former phone use? Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it? Or does it?

Author and environmental scientist Jason Bawden-Smith believes that, with regard to the harmful effects of living in a technologically connected world, we are currently living in the dark.

Philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer claims that 'All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident." With regard to the harmful effects of living in a technologically connected world, author and environmental scientist Jason Bawden-Smith believes we are currently in the first two stages.

Jason Bawden-Smith is an Australian born and educated environmental scientist with extensive knowledge and experience on the impact of chemicals and pathogens on human health and the broader environment. Jason has over 25 years diversified environmental health experience, ranging from environmental risk communication and management to health risk assessments for metals, persistent organic chemicals, and other hazardous materials. In recent years Jason has been researching, investigating and developing cost-effective solutions to the adverse impact of EMFs on human health and the environment.

Jason holds a both a Bachelor of Applied Science in Environmental Health and a Master's degree in Environmental Studies. During his short career in academia, he published eleven peer-reviewed papers, including three in the prestigious Medical Journal of Australia, and he has presented at numerous national and international environmental conferences.

Jason Bawden-Smith is also a successful entrepreneur, author and speaker. He has founded four companies during his business career, including one of largest and most successful contaminated land consultancy companies in Australia (100 employees and a revenue of $30 million). His current business venture, JBS Technologies, offers cutting-edge technological solutions for protecting against harmful EMFs and mitigating blue light.

In the Dark
Major Street Publishing
Author: Jason Bawden-Smith
ISBN: 9780994542465

 

Interview with Jason Bawden-Smith

Question: What inspired you to write In the Dark?

Jason Bawden-Smith: I am an environmental scientist and I love my technology. But I was starting to have some health problems, which prompted me to take a look at my lifestyle and look at the impact technology and indoor living was doing to my health. As I'm a scientist by training, I couldn't help but start to do some in depth research. The more I learned, the more concerned I became. I also realised that most of what I was discovering was not common knowledge – most people had been kept 'In the Dark" about the effects of technology and indoor living on their health. Hence the book.


Question: How does technology affect our sleep?

Jason Bawden-Smith: This is not easy to answer in a few sentences, many things can adversely affect our sleep. One of most important impacts is the exposure to the blue light spectrum at night from house lights, smart phones and TV screens. The artificial light tricks the body into thinking it's still daytime and therefore you have trouble falling to sleep. There's a whole section on light, especially the importance on getting morning sunlight in the book.


Question: How is our modern lifestyle harmful to our health?

Jason Bawden-Smith: We are born naked and meant to live outside. But in a modern world we spend most of our time indoors disconnected from nature. Most people rarely see sun light and if they do they usually are wearing sunglasses. I cover why an indoor lifestyle is so harmful for your health in depth in the book. But if you consider an average person's day: they spend 8 hours or so at work in artificial light – often in front of a computer screen. By the time they get home its dark so they turn on the lights and spend their leisure time on their smart phones or watching TV. They are being exposed to harmful microwaves from their phones and wi-fi router all day and night. Their body is constantly exposed to these harmful signals, it's like invisible and painless Chinese water torture. Most of us even take smart phones to bed putting them under their pillow or on their bedside table with those harmful EMFs right next to their brains! Is it any wonder so many people are having difficulty sleeping, suffer from headaches, ringing in their ears, fatigue and depression?


Question: Can you talk about you research into mobile phones and their association with cancer?

Jason Bawden-Smith: I have over 100 references to scientific studies published in peer review journals in the book. On the question do mobiles phones cause cancer, the jury is still out. But after weighing up all the evidence my answer is probably! Did you know that Apple have warnings about exposure hidden deep within the settings on every iPhone. Guess what they say - keep your phone away from your body. Telstra also sends out texts on tips to reduce EMF exposure! We are all being warned but in language that is hard to understand and appreciate. Like smoking and exposure to asbestos, it take 20 or more years for cancers to develop. It's not until years down the track that we look back and see how dumb we've been.


Interview by Brooke Hunter

 

In the Dark
Major Street Publishing
Author: Jason Bawden-Smith
ISBN: 9780994542465