Myth Buster: You Can Get Cancer from the Battery in an EV

Myth: Expo­sure to the elec­tro­mag­net­ic fields of the bat­tery in an elec­tric vehi­cle could cause cancer.

Myth BUSTED: The mag­net­ic fields in elec­tric vehi­cles pose no dan­ger because their elec­tro­mag­net­ic field lev­els are below the rec­om­mend­ed standards.

Although stud­ies have linked EMF expo­sure with seri­ous health issues, the expo­sure an EV dri­ver would be expe­ri­enc­ing is low­er than 20% of the val­ue rec­om­mend­ed by the Inter­na­tion­al Com­mis­sion on Non-Ion­is­ing Radi­a­tion Pro­tec­tion (ICNIRP). These results come from a sev­en-coun­try, EU-fund­ed study that involved test­ing of sev­en dif­fer­ent elec­tric cars, one hydro­gen-pow­ered car, two petrol-fueled cars and one diesel-fueled car. In the non-elec­tric cars, expo­sure was mea­sured at around 10% of the rec­om­mend­ed safe­ty lev­el. Even the high­est val­ues of EMF expo­sure in the EVs, which would occur when start­ing the car and being locat­ed clos­est to the bat­tery, do not yield any health concerns.

Source

Zolfaghar­i­fard, E. (2014). Experts dis­miss fears that dri­ving elec­tric cars could cause can­cer. Retrieved 15 Decem­ber 2020, from https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2621341/Are-electric-cars-safe-drive-Experts-dismiss-fears-exposure-electromagnetic-fields-cause-cancer.html