text: Most home appliances don't give off enough of an EMF to affect us, at least so far as any studies have been able to determine.  Higher energy appliances like microwaves were once shielded rather badly, resulting in the warning in all the instruction manuals not to stand close to a running microwave if you have a pacemaker or internal defibrillator, because the stray EM could cause it to malfunction (I believe they've solved the shielding problem in modern models, but the warning's still there, just in case)  Just in case, I'd sit back a ways from the TV... luckily, the new LCD computer monitors put out considerably less EM (almost none, really)  These days, there are more hazards from the incidental (or intended) output other than stray EM -- tanning beds put out UV light that can damage skin over the long term or cause blindness if you don't wear the goggles properly, copy machines and faxes create ozone which can damage the lining of the lungs, etc.