Over the past decade, cell phone use has grown dramatically in popularity, in particularly among minority communities like African Americans. A recent study conducted by researchers at Yale University has provided more insight about the safety of cell phones and some possible health risks.
Although in its early stages, Yale University researchers have suggested a possible connection between cell phone usage and behavioral problems in children like Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. They suggest that cell phones could account for the higher rates of behavioral problems in children and society. The study used pregnant mice and exposed them to radiation from an active cell phone.
In the experimental group, thirty three pregnant mice were exposed to radiation from a silenced, but active cell phone. The cell phone was on an active call for 17 of the 19 days of the pregnancy. The control group on the other hand, was kept in a cage where there was a cell phone that was turned off.
Results noted that the offspring that were born were typically more anxious and had poorer memory compared to infant mice whose mothers were not exposed to radiation. One of the researchers who conducted the study, Hugh Taylor of the Yale School of Medicine said, “We have shown that behavioral problems in mice that resemble ADHD are caused by cell phone exposure in the womb. The rise in behavioral disorders in human children may be in part due to fetal cellular telephone irradiation exposure.” Taylor also added, “We have shown that behavioral problems in mice that resemble ADHD are caused by cell phone exposure in the womb. The rise in behavioral disorders in human children may be in part due to fetal cellular telephone irradiation exposure.”
Additional research is needed to determine if these findings can be generalized to human populations since rodents pregnancies only last for 19 days, and the offspring are born with less-developed brains. However, the scientist do suggest that limiting cell phone usage during pregnancy is warranted.
The study was funded by grants from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development, and Environment and Human Health, Inc. and published in Scientific Reports 2 : 312 | DOI: 10.1038/srep00312
