Intraseptal microinjection of beta-funaltrexamine blocked a microwave-induced decrease of hippocampal cholinergic activity in the rat.
Lai H, Carino MA, Horita A, Guy AW, · 1994
View Original AbstractMicrowave radiation at cell phone levels activates brain opioid systems and reduces memory-related brain activity in laboratory studies.
Plain English Summary
Scientists exposed rats to microwave radiation at cell phone levels and found it reduced brain activity in the hippocampus, which controls memory and learning. The effect was blocked by targeting opioid receptors, suggesting microwave exposure activates natural brain chemicals that could impact cognitive function.
Why This Matters
This study provides compelling evidence that microwave radiation at everyday exposure levels can alter brain chemistry in ways we're only beginning to understand. The exposure level used (0.6 W/kg SAR) is well within the range of modern cell phone emissions, making these findings directly relevant to millions of daily users. What makes this research particularly significant is that it identifies a specific biological mechanism - the activation of endogenous opioids - that could explain how RF radiation affects brain function. The reality is that your brain's opioid system, which normally helps regulate pain and mood, appears to respond to microwave exposure as if it were a stressor. This isn't about immediate harm, but rather about subtle neurochemical changes that occur during routine exposure. The hippocampus, the brain region affected in this study, plays a central role in memory formation and learning - functions that millions of people rely on daily while using wireless devices.
Exposure Details
- SAR
- 0.6 W/kg
- Power Density
- 1 µW/m²
- Source/Device
- 2450 MHz
- Exposure Duration
- 45 min
Exposure Context
This study used 1 µW/m² for radio frequency:
- 100Mx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.1 μW/m²
- 1.7Mx above the BioInitiative Report recommendation of 0.0006 μW/cm²
This study used 0.6 W/kg for SAR (device absorption):
- 1.5x above the Building Biology guideline of 0.4 W/kg
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 Details
The aim of this study is to observe Intraseptal microinjection of beta-funaltrexamine blocked a microwave-induced decrease of hippocampal cholinergic activity in the rat.
Acute (45 min) exposure to pulsed (2 microseconds pulse width, 500 pulses per second) 2450-MHz micro...
These data indicate that mu-opioid receptors in the septum mediate a microwave-induced decrease in cholinergic activity in the hippocampus and support our hypothesis that microwaves at a whole body SAR of 0.6 W/kg can activate endogenous opioids in the brain.
Show BibTeX
@article{h_1994_intraseptal_microinjection_of_betafunaltrexamine_1137,
author = {Lai H and Carino MA and Horita A and Guy AW and},
title = {Intraseptal microinjection of beta-funaltrexamine blocked a microwave-induced decrease of hippocampal cholinergic activity in the rat.},
year = {1994},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8866962/},
}