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Brain & Nervous System

Effects of exposure to electromagnetic fields emitted by GSM 900 and WCDMA mobile phones on cognitive function in young male subjects

No Effects Found

Sauter C, Dorn H, Bahr A, Hansen ML, Peter A, Bajbouj M, Danker-Hopfe H · 2011

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The study found no evidence that GSM 900 or WCDMA mobile phone signals affect human cognition, though time of day influenced reaction speed.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers tested 30 healthy young men exposed to GSM 900, WCDMA, and sham signals over nine study days. After correction for multiple testing, only time-of-day effects remained significant in two tests, resulting in faster reactions in the afternoon trials. Univariate comparisons revealed significant changes for GSM 900 only in the vigilance test. WCDMA exposure altered one parameter in vigilance and one in divided attention, while selective attention and the n-back task were not affected by either exposure.

Why This Matters

The study was designed because previous research on mobile phone signals and cognition had produced contradictory results. Exposure sessions lasted 7 hours and 15 minutes, and all cognitive tests were administered in both morning and afternoon sessions on each study day. The researchers emphasized that controlling for time of day is necessary because time-of-day effects were evident across multiple cognitive tests.

Exposure Details

SAR
7.82 and 10.98 W/kg
Source/Device
900 MHz and 1,966 MHz
Exposure Duration
3 days (à 7 h 15 minutes)

Exposure Context

This study used 7.82 and 10.98 W/kg for SAR (device absorption):

Building Biology guidelines are practitioner-based limits from real-world assessments. BioInitiative Report recommendations are based on peer-reviewed science. Check Your Exposure to compare your own measurements.

Where This Falls on the Concern Scale

Study Exposure Level in ContextStudy Exposure Level in ContextThis study: 7.82 and 10.98 W/kgExtreme Concern - 0.1 W/kgFCC Limit - 1.6 W/kgEffects observed in the Extreme Concern range (Building Biology)This level is 5 times the FCC limit
A logarithmic frequency spectrum from 10 Hz to 100 GHz showing where this study's 900 MHz - 1.97 GHz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 900 MHz - 1.97 GHzPower lines50/60 Hz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

Study Details

Results of studies on the possible effects of electromagnetic fields emitted by mobile phones on cognitive functions are contradictory, therefore, possible effects of long‐term (7 h 15 min) electromagnetic field (EMF) exposure to handset‐like signals of Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) 900 and Wideband Code‐Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) on attention and working memory were studied.

The sample comprised 30 healthy male subjects (mean ± SD: 25.3 ± 2.6 years), who were tested on nine...

Time‐of‐day effects were evident for the tests on divided and selective attention, as well as for wo...

The results of the present study do not provide any evidence of an EMF effect on human cognition, but they underline the necessity to control for time of day.

Cite This Study
Sauter C, Dorn H, Bahr A, Hansen ML, Peter A, Bajbouj M, Danker-Hopfe H (2011). Effects of exposure to electromagnetic fields emitted by GSM 900 and WCDMA mobile phones on cognitive function in young male subjects Bioelectromagnetics. 32(3):179-190, 2011.
Show BibTeX
@article{c_2011_effects_of_exposure_to_2804,
  author = {Sauter C and Dorn H and Bahr A and Hansen ML and Peter A and Bajbouj M and Danker-Hopfe H},
  title = {Effects of exposure to electromagnetic fields emitted by GSM 900 and WCDMA mobile phones on cognitive function in young male subjects},
  year = {2011},
  doi = {10.1002/bem.20623},
  url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/bem.20623},
}
DOI: 10.1002/bem.20623

Cited By (41 papers)

View all 41 citing papers on Semantic Scholar

Quick Questions About This Study

The study tested three exposure conditions: sham, GSM 900, and WCDMA mobile phone signals.
The study found no evidence of an EMF effect on human cognition.
Time-of-day effects were evident for divided and selective attention and working memory, with faster reactions in afternoon trials.
Univariate analysis showed changes in vigilance during GSM 900 exposure, and in vigilance and divided attention during WCDMA exposure, while selective attention and working memory were unaffected.
The study included 30 healthy young men and used exposure sessions lasting 7 hours and 15 minutes.