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A prospective cohort study of adolescents' memory performance and individual brain dose of microwave radiation from wireless communication

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Foerster et al · 2018

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Higher cell phone radiation exposure was linked to decreased memory performance in Swiss adolescents over one year.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Swiss researchers followed 669 adolescents for one year, measuring their brain's exposure to cell phone radiation and testing their memory performance. They found that teens with higher cumulative radiation exposure to their brains showed decreased figural memory scores, particularly those who held phones to their right ear. The effect was strongest when using actual network data to calculate radiation doses.

Why This Matters

This Swiss cohort study represents some of the most sophisticated research on cell phone radiation and adolescent brain function to date. The researchers didn't just rely on self-reported phone use - they actually modeled individual brain dose based on usage patterns and phone specifications. What makes this particularly concerning is that figural memory involves the brain regions most exposed during phone calls, suggesting a direct biological mechanism. The fact that right-side phone users showed stronger effects aligns with the lateralization of brain function and radiation exposure patterns. This isn't about extreme exposures - these are typical usage levels among Swiss teenagers, representing everyday radiation doses that millions of young people experience globally. The study's longitudinal design and careful control for media usage behaviors strengthens the evidence that RF-EMF itself, not just screen time or digital media habits, may be affecting developing brains.

Exposure Information

Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study.

Cite This Study
Foerster et al (2018). A prospective cohort study of adolescents' memory performance and individual brain dose of microwave radiation from wireless communication.
Show BibTeX
@article{a_prospective_cohort_study_of_adolescents_memory_performance_and_individual_brain_dose_of_microwave_radiation_from_wireless_communication_ce4702,
  author = {Foerster et al},
  title = {A prospective cohort study of adolescents' memory performance and individual brain dose of microwave radiation from wireless communication},
  year = {2018},
  doi = {10.1289/EHP2427},
  url = {http://bit.ly/2wJs0Pm},
}
DOI: 10.1289/EHP2427PubMed: 30044230

Quick Questions About This Study

An interquartile range increase of 953 mJ/kg per day of cumulative brain dose was associated with decreased figural memory scores. This represents typical variation in cell phone usage patterns among adolescents.
Right-side phone users showed a -0.39 point decrease in figural memory scores compared to -0.22 for all users. This likely reflects brain lateralization, where specific memory functions are processed in regions most exposed during right-ear phone use.
No. Researchers controlled for media usage unrelated to RF-EMF and found no significant associations. Only radiation-emitting device usage showed consistent negative effects on figural memory, suggesting RF-EMF exposure was the key factor.
Researchers followed 669-676 adolescents for one year, measuring changes in verbal and figural memory scores. This longitudinal design helps establish whether radiation exposure preceded memory changes rather than just correlation.
Figural memory showed consistent decreases with higher RF-EMF brain dose, while verbal memory was not significantly affected. Figural memory involves visual-spatial processing in brain regions most exposed during phone calls.