IS SOMEONE you know suffering from wi-fi sickness?
How about 5G sensitivity or wind turbine syndrome?
Maybe not, but you've probably heard of them - and possibly given a little eye-roll.
These so-called techno-somatic syndromes arise when "non-specific anxiety and physical symptoms have been misattributed to a novel, invisible technology that is poorly understood by the public", according to a paper published last week in the New Zealand Medical Journal.
The syndrome can be traced back to the late 19th century, with "telephone tinnitus", "railway spine" and "bicycle face".
The latter postulated that anxiety and prolonged facial grimacing while trying to balance on a bike could lead to nervous exhaustion and permanently alter women's facial structure (men were somehow protected from the scourge of bicycle face).
The authors noted that this misinformation was spread largely by doctors writing in mainstream media, giving credibility to unfounded fears.
Today, thanks to the great democratisation of media, anyone with an interesting idea can spread it far and wide.
The role of health professionals now, the authors said, is to acknowledge anxieties around new technology, rather than dismiss them, and use the example of bicycle face to explain the long history of such anxieties as a cultural, rather than medical, phenomenon.
The above article was sent to subscribers in Pharmacy Daily's issue from 04 Mar 26
To see the full newsletter, see the embedded issue below or CLICK HERE to download Pharmacy Daily from 04 Mar 26

