Oxidative stress induced by 1.8 GHz radio frequency electromagnetic radiation and effects of garlic extract in rats.
Avci B, Akar A, Bilgici B, Tunçel ÖK · 2012
View Original AbstractCell phone-level radiation damaged brain proteins in rats, but antioxidants reduced this harm, suggesting oxidative stress drives EMF brain effects.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed rats to cell phone-level radiation (1.8 GHz) for one hour daily for three weeks and found it caused protein damage in brain tissue. The study also tested whether garlic extract could protect against this damage and found it significantly reduced the brain protein damage caused by the radiation. This suggests that cell phone radiation can harm brain proteins, but certain antioxidants may offer some protection.
Why This Matters
This study adds to mounting evidence that radiofrequency radiation at levels typical of cell phone use can cause biological damage, specifically protein oxidation in brain tissue. The 0.4 W/kg SAR level used here is well within current safety limits and similar to what your phone produces during calls. What makes this research particularly valuable is that it demonstrates a clear biological mechanism - oxidative damage to proteins - rather than just statistical associations. The finding that garlic extract reduced this damage points to oxidative stress as a key pathway through which RF radiation may harm the brain. While we shouldn't interpret this as a recommendation to simply eat more garlic and ignore EMF exposure, it does suggest that supporting your body's antioxidant systems may be one component of a comprehensive EMF protection strategy.
Exposure Details
- SAR
- 0.4 W/kg
- Source/Device
- 1.8 GHz
- Exposure Duration
- 1 h a day for three weeks
Where This Falls on the Concern Scale
Study Details
We aimed to study the oxidative damage induced by radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation (RF-EMR) emitted by mobile telephones and the protective effect of garlic extract used as an anti-oxidant against this damage.
A total of 66 albino Wistar rats were divided into three groups. The first group of rats was given 1...
After the RF-EMR exposed, the advanced oxidation protein product (AOPP) levels of brain tissue incre...
The exposure of RF-EMR similar to 1.8 GHz Global system for mobile communication (GSM) leads to protein oxidation in brain tissue and an increase in serum NO. We observed that garlic administration reduced protein oxidation in brain tissue and that it did not have any effects on serum NO levels.
Show BibTeX
@article{b_2012_oxidative_stress_induced_by_510,
author = {Avci B and Akar A and Bilgici B and Tunçel ÖK},
title = {Oxidative stress induced by 1.8 GHz radio frequency electromagnetic radiation and effects of garlic extract in rats.},
year = {2012},
doi = {10.3109/09553002.2012.711504},
url = {https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/09553002.2012.711504},
}