{
  "id": "glossary:non-thermal-effect",
  "collection": "glossary",
  "slug": "non-thermal-effect",
  "name": "Non-thermal effect",
  "summary": "A proposed biological effect at exposure levels too low to cause measurable heating; the central claim of precautionary guidelines and the central objection of regulators.",
  "status": "verified",
  "lastVerified": "2026-08-12",
  "data": {
    "definition": "Non-thermal effects are biological responses proposed to occur below the heating threshold, for example via oxidative stress or voltage-gated calcium channels. ICNIRP's position is that no such effect has been established with sufficient consistency to base limits on. Precautionary frameworks such as BioInitiative and EUROPAEM assume they exist and propose targets orders of magnitude lower. This site records both positions and labels which is which.",
    "category": "health",
    "seeAlso": [
      "glossary:thermal-effect",
      "standards:bioinitiative-2012"
    ]
  },
  "sources": [
    {
      "id": "icnirp-2020",
      "title": "Guidelines for Limiting Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (100 kHz to 300 GHz)",
      "publisher": "International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection",
      "url": "https://www.icnirp.org/en/publications/article/rf-guidelines-2020.html",
      "year": 2020,
      "kind": "guideline",
      "retrieved": "2026-08-12"
    },
    {
      "id": "bioinitiative-2012",
      "title": "BioInitiative Report 2012 (updated) — conclusions and recommended precautionary levels",
      "publisher": "BioInitiative Working Group",
      "url": "https://bioinitiative.org/conclusions/",
      "year": 2012,
      "kind": "ngo",
      "retrieved": "2026-08-12"
    },
    {
      "id": "europaem-2016",
      "title": "EUROPAEM EMF Guideline 2016 for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of EMF-related health problems",
      "publisher": "European Academy for Environmental Medicine",
      "url": "https://europaem.eu/en/library/blog-en/97-europaem-emf-guideline-2016",
      "year": 2016,
      "kind": "ngo",
      "retrieved": "2026-08-12"
    }
  ],
  "links": {
    "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/non-thermal-effect",
    "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/non-thermal-effect",
    "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/non-thermal-effect.md",
    "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary"
  }
}