Cell Phones & Brain Activity

About 50 minutes on a cell phone accelerates activity in the areas of the brain next to the phone, finds a pioneering study recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

The study is the first to demonstrate the use of cell phones speeds up brain activity. However, the study's nine authors carefully explain the broader health consequences of accelerated brain activity from cell phone exposure are unknown and yet-to-be-determined. As a result, the authors emphasize it is premature to assert if the study's preliminary findings provide clinically meaningful insights about the impact of cell phones on user health and safety.

The authors report the study suggests that brain absorption of the radio frequencies from a cell phone may (and we quote) 'enhance the excitability of brain tissue' (end of quote). The study found a seven percent increase in the metabolism rate in the area of the brain nearest to a cell phone's antenna after the phone was activated for about 50 minutes.

The study also highlights (and we quote): 'the importance of doing studies to address the question of whether there are – or are not – long lasting consequences of repeated stimulation, of getting exposed over 5, 10, or 15 years,' (end of quote) said Nora Volkow, M.D., the study's first author and director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, to the New York Times.

In the study, 47 healthy volunteers had cell phones strapped to both their ears for about 50 minutes. Some cell phones were turned on next to a volunteer's right ear and shut down next to the other. Some phones on both ears were turned off. Brain scans of the volunteers showed the metabolism rates in areas of the brain nearest to an activated phone's antenna. Metabolism rates increased when the same cell phones (held over a study volunteer's ear) were turned on and declined when cell phones were turned off.

More specifically, the researchers assessed if a cell phone's radio frequencies increased levels of glucose metabolism in the brain. Glucose (sugar) metabolism is the natural process where cells convert glucose into energy. Its 'excitability,' to use the study's authors' term, visually appears as a reddish dot displayed in brain scans that were published with the study's other findings.

An editorial that accompanies the JAMA study adds the activated cell phones used in the study were in a 'listen' rather than a 'talk' mode – study volunteers only listened to prerecorded information. The editorial's authors suggest the brain's exposure to radio frequency may be more extensive when a person talks (or transmits) on a cell phone. The editorial's authors write (and we quote): 'the effect observed could thus potentially be more pronounced in normal-use situations' (end of quote). The authors of the editorial and the study agree the current findings minimally suggest a pressing need for research to assess if health consequences are linked to unknown issues, such as the degree radio frequencies (that vary among cell phone models) may be linked to health and safety risks. In addition, the differences in health and safety risks from cell phone exposure have yet to be differentiated among children, teens, adult men and women, as well as other demographic groups.

MedlinePlus.gov's electromagnetic fields (or EMFs) health topic page explains EMFs are areas of energy that include the radio frequencies given off by cell phones and other electrical devices.

MedlinePlus.gov's electromagnetic fields health topic page notes the impact of EMFs upon health is a longstanding research area, but past studies often pursued the impact of exposure from other products as well as different research questions. For example, MedlinePlus.gov's electromagnetic fields health topic page explains previous studies about the EMF exposure from power lines and electric blankets found little evidence of a link to cancer. MedlinePlus.gov's electromagnetic fields health topic page reports other research suggests EMFs may reduce heart rates and interfere with brain electrical activity during sleep, but their impact on health is uncertain.

A good introduction to the EMF health risks from cell phones, provided by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, is available in the 'specific conditions' section of MedlinePlus.gov's electromagnetic fields health topic page. An introduction to the risk of cancer from using cell phones is available in the medical encyclopedia on the right hand side of MedlinePlus.gov's electromagnetic fields health topic page.

MedlinePlus.gov's electromagnetic fields health topic page also contains research summaries, which are available in the 'research' section. Links to the latest pertinent journal research articles are available in the 'journal articles' section.

To find MedlinePlus.gov's electromagnetic fields health topic page, type 'EMF' in the search box on MedlinePlus.gov's home page, then, click on 'Electromagnetic Fields (National Library of Medicine).'

The current study – coupled with the JAMA commentary – suggest we are at the start of a journey to understand if the health impact of radio frequencies from cell phones is benign or problematic. Please count on MedlinePlus.gov to provide access to – and insights about – related findings in the future.

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Cell Phones & Brain Activity



Electromagnetic Fields: MedlinePlus
Electromagnetic Fields: MedlinePlus