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⚡ EHN: power plant workers exposed to ELF fields report worse sleep and more depression below ICNIRP limits

August 26, 2026 (EMFS)
Aug 22, 2026 (original)
Source: Environmental Health News
Source category: Press
AI use
Environmental Health News, published by the nonprofit Environmental Health Sciences, summarises a cross-sectional study by Imène Kacem and colleagues in Frontiers in Psychiatry. At a Tunisian power plant, workers occupationally exposed to extremely low frequency electromagnetic fields were significantly more likely to report poor sleep and depression than unexposed administrative staff, and also showed higher anxiety and stress. The associations were found at exposure levels well below ICNIRP and IEEE limits. EHN places the finding in the context of expanding grid infrastructure driven by AI data centres and the absence of US federal EMF exposure limits.

"Our study revealed that occupational exposure to ELF-EMFs may negatively affect sleep quality and mental health, even at levels far below regulatory guidelines for this type of field. These findings underscore the importance of implementing safer workplace practices and incorporating them into Occupational Health and Safety training."

— Kacem et al., Frontiers in Psychiatry, quoted by EHN

"Exposed workers were significantly more likely to suffer from poor sleep and depression compared to the unexposed administrative staff at the same power plants."

— Environmental Health News

"These associations were found at ELF- EMF exposure levels well below both the exposure limits of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) as well as of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)."

— Environmental Health News

Location

📍 Tunisia

Map: Tunisia

Source

Depression, poor sleep quality linked to occupational exposure to EMF radiation ehn.org

📄 Underlying Research

Impact of extremely low frequency electromagnetic fields exposure on sleep quality and mental health in a Tunisian power plant: a cross-sectional study

Kacem I, Jammeli I, Sridi C, Gaddour A, Makhloufi M, Aloui A, Chouchane A, Maalel OE, Kahloul M, Mrizak N (2026) Frontiers in Psychiatry Journal Level 1ⓘ

🔗 DOI

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