Whether you are a clinician working in this field or a potential parent, you should know that the findings from hundreds of published studies indicate we should be concerned - even before conception - about a range of environmental health hazards, including the radiation from all things wired and wireless.
First, here is a brief report of a 2011 conference where prominent scientists in this field, including Devra Davis, PhD, MPH Founder and President of Environmental Health Trust, raised concerns about microwave radiation.
The studies reviewed at this conference showed that levels of microwave radiation produced by cell phones significantly damage and reduce sperm, impair DNA and memory, and cause deficits in offspring whose mothers are exposed during pregnancy.
The advice for all of us would be to limit the use of cell phones and all wireless devices. The harmful fields drop off dramatically with distance so it is helpful to keep yourself as far away as possible from the source. Pregnant women, or those couples wanting to conceive, should take extra pre-cautions to limit exposure.
When one understands this new aging factor, it becomes shocking to see a pregnant women anywhere near a cell phone or other WiFi-enabled device - or an infant near a digital wireless baby monitor.
Cell Phones and Health Conference in Istanbul, June 14th, 2011
New findings from Research Teams at Biophysics in Gazi University, Ankara, confirm that pre-natal exposures to pulsed digital signals from cell phones in rabbits and rats damage the brain, eyes, liver and skin of offspring.
Detailed analyses of changes in different types of brain cells and structure after pre-natal exposure to cell phone radiation were presented by Prof. Sulleyman Kaplan, Ondokuz Mayis University, Samsun, and biomarkers of genetic and other damage to cells and organs were provided by Prof. Nesrin Seyhan and her students and colleagues from Gazi University, Department of Physics.
Prof. Annie Sasco, drawing on work of Profs. Elisabeth Cardis and Siegal Sadetzki, explained the limits of epidemiologic studies to date and noted that long-term regular cell phone use is linked with significantly elevated risk of gliomas, acoustic neuromas, and parotid gland tumors.
Conference Highlights: Findings on The Effects of Cell Phone Radiation
1. In newborns:
- elevated patterns of well-established markers of cancer risk
- DNA base modification
- oxidative stress parameters
- other accepted biomarkers of chronic degenerative diseases
(Arin Tomruk)
2. Increased carcinogenisity risk (Prof. Dr. Livio Giuliani)
3. Destroyed or damaged lymphocytes—human blood cells that are critical to healing the immune system. (Meric Arda Esmekaya)
4. DNA damage in hair root cells derived from the region close to the antenna of the irradiating mobile phone as well as skin aging. (Semra Tepe Çam)
5. Changes of two main regions of the brain, the hippocampus and cerebellum, related to memory and other functions. (Prof. Dr. Süleyman Kaplan)
6. Significant damage to human sperm from cell phone radiation, confirming studies that have been carried out in Australia, the US and Greece. (Prof. Dr. Emin Oztas)
…
Second, here's a partial summary of the science:
Mechanisms of EMF - adverse effects on living tissue and cells:
1. Gowrishankar TR, Weaver JC. An approach to electrical modeling of single and multiple cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2003 Mar 18;100(6):3203-8.
2. Tieleman DP. The molecular basis of electroporation. BMC Biochem. 2004 Jul19;5:10.
3. Chen W. Electroconformational denaturation of membrane proteins. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2005 Dec;1066:92-105.
4. Johansson O. Disturbance of the immune system by electromagnetic fields-A potentially underlying cause for cellular damage and tissue repair reduction which could lead to disease and impairment. Pathophysiology. 2009 Aug;16(2-3):157-77.
EMF exposure - related to cancer
5. Green LM, Miller AB, Agnew DA, Greenberg ML, Li J, Villeneuve PJ, Tibshirani R. Cancer Causes Control. Childhood leukemia and personal monitoring of residential exposures to electric and magnetic fields in Ontario, Canada.1999 Jun;10(3):233-43.
6. Hardell L, Carlberg M. Int J Oncol. Mobile phones, cordless phones and the risk for brain tumours. 2009 Jul;35(1):5-17.
7. Khurana VG, Teo C, Kundi M, Hardell L, Carlberg M. Cell phones and brain tumors: a review including the long-term epidemiologic data. Surg Neurol. 2009 Sep;72(3):205-14; discussion 214-5.
EMF exposure - damage to male and female reproductive gametes (sperm cells - egg cells)
8. De Iuliis GN, Newey RJ, King BV, Aitken RJ. Mobile phone radiation induces reactive oxygen species production and DNA damage in human spermatozoa in vitro. PLoS One. 2009 Jul 31;4(7):e6446.
9. Krylov VV. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf. Effects of electromagnetic fields on parthenogenic eggs of Daphnia magna Straus. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf. 2010. Jan; 73(1):62-6.
EMF exposure - adverse effects on the developing fetal brain
10. Nakamichi N, Ishioka Y, Hirai T, Ozawa S, Tachibana M, Nakamura N, Takarada T, Yoneda Y. Possible promotion of neuronal differentiation in fetal rat brain neural progenitor cells after sustained expoure to static magnetism. J Neurosci Res. 2009, Aug 15;87(11):2406-17.
EMF exposure - damage to female organs (non-pregnant or pregnant women)
11. Watson JM, Parrish EA, Rinehart CA. Selective potentiation of gynecologic cancer cell growth in vitro by electromagnetic fields. Gynecol Oncol. 1998 Oct;71(1):64-71.
12. Li DK, Checkoway H, Mueller BA. Electric blanket use during pregnancy in relation to the risk of congenital urinary tract anomalies among women with a history of subfertility. Epidemiology. 1995 Sep;6(5):485-9.
EMF exposure - miscarriages
13. Li DK, Odouli R, Wi S, Janevic T, Golditch I, Bracken TD, Senior R, Rankin R, Iriye R. A population-based prospective cohort study of personal exposure to magnetic fields during pregnancy and the risk of miscarriage. Epidemiology 2002;13:9-20.
14. Lee GM, Neutra RR, Hristova L, Yost M, Hiatt RA. A nested case-control study of residential and personal magnetic field measures and miscarriages. Epidemiology. January 2002. 13 (1): 21–31.
EMF exposure - birth defects
15. Robert E. Birth defects and high voltage power lines: an exploratory study based on registry data. Reprod Toxicol. 1993 May-Jun; 7(3) 283-7.
Complications during pregnancy
16. Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Sutton PD, et al. Births: Final data for 2003. National vital statistics reports; vol 54, no 2. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2005.
