Radiation

Sitting at and using a computer day after day is much more likely to result in a repetitive strain injury than in cancer due to VDT radiation. Nonetheless, if you are worried about the effects of VDT radiation, here is some information to ease your mind.

First of all, what is VDT radiation? It is the radiation that video display terminals – like computer monitors and televisions – emit. There has been continual debate over whether or not VDT radiation can lead to health problems. To date, there has been no substantial evidence to suggest that it does.

Some say that while the VDT radiation is of an extremely low frequency, chronically being exposed to it can still lead to cancer. Again, there is no hard evidence to back up this theory.

Perhaps you think working in a cubicle, surrounded by hundreds of computers at your office can increase the radiation produced by VDT monitors. The truth is that the VDT monitors’ electric and magnetic fields diminish rapidly with distance. In other words, working in a room full of computers is no more dangerous than working in a room with just one computer… not that either situation has been proven to be dangerous.

Also, realize that the picture tubes in computer monitors and television sets are coated to absorb the already-weak x-rays emitted by it. The x-rays outside of the tube are of negligible measurements – they are not dangerous.

Nonetheless, there is most certainly no harm in keeping your face 20 inches away from your computer monitor. And if you are afraid of VDT radiation (regardless of the inconclusive evidence against it), be sure to use a flat panel display rather than a CRT monitor. A CRT monitor is one that includes a cathode ray tube.

Note: It is still a good idea to keep on top of studies concerning VDT radiation and electro magnetic fields in relation to computer-use. While the there has been no conclusive evidence to suggest problems yet (and the author of this article does not believe there ever will be), who knows what information the future may bring?