Passengers board the G417 bullet train as it prepares to depart from the Nanning East Railway Station in South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region to Hong Kong on July 10, 2019. Photo: VCG

Electromagnetic radiation on Chinese high-speed trains is within a safe range, said the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) on its official WeChat account on Sunday, refuting rumors that such radiation poses a health hazard.

"Such slander appeared on the internet in 2013, with highly similar content claiming that Chinese bullet trains have radiation safety concerns," said the SASAC. 

All electric appliances emit radiation. That includes mobile phones and razors, which are used in daily life. Radiation will not affect people within a safe range, said the SASAC.

The safety standard for electric field radiation is less than 5 kilovolts per meter, according to the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection. The radical level of Chinese bullet trains is within the range of 0.011-0.021 kilovolt/meter in high-speed railway cars, the connections of cars and the cabs of different models, according to data measured by the Beijing Bureau of China Rail, the SASAC said.

"The amount of electromagnetic radiation from China's bullet trains is far below the international standard, which is unlikely to harm human beings," said the SASAC. "Designers made an effort to reduce radiation."

"The electromagnetic radiation mainly comes from the traction motor at the bottom of the carriage," said Jiang li, an expert of China Railway Rolling Stock Corp (CRRC), the SASAC reported. 

Jiang said that the metal shells of domestic carriages have a shielding effect, and the thickened metal plate under the seat can effectively block radiation from the traction motor. 

An anonymous source at CRRC Qingdao Sifang Rolling Stock Research Institute Corp confirmed the remarks to the Global Times on Monday.

"Your chemistry teacher will cry you a river," commented the SASAC when responding to a rumor that France's high-speed train, the TGV, uses lead sulfide as an isolation layer to reduce radiation.

"Lead sulfide is toxic and European railways have set high standards for levels of toxic substances, which makes it impossible to use lead sulfide as a barrier," said Jiang.

"China's high-speed rail uses 25 kilovolts alternating-current electricity at 50 hertz, opposing the frequency of X-rays, which makes the claims online misleading" said the SASAC, citing Sun Zhang, editor-in-chief of Urban Mass Transit.

The "made in China" label on Chinese railway products is a guarantee of quality and technology, said the SASAC.