Effects of mobile phone exposure (GSM 900 and WCDMA/UMTS) on polysomnography based sleep quality: An intra- and inter-individual perspective
Danker-Hopfe H, Dorn H, Bolz T, Peter A, Hansen ML, Eggert T, Sauter C · 2015
View Original AbstractCell phone radiation altered sleep patterns in 90% of participants, showing our brains respond to EMF even during rest.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed 30 healthy men to cell phone radiation during sleep and found 90% showed altered sleep patterns. The most consistent change was increased REM (dream) sleep in one-third of participants, suggesting cell phone signals can affect brain activity during sleep.
Why This Matters
This study provides compelling evidence that cell phone radiation affects brain function during one of our most vulnerable states - sleep. The fact that 90% of participants showed measurable changes in their sleep architecture demonstrates how sensitive our brains are to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields, even at exposure levels within current safety limits. What makes this research particularly significant is its rigorous design: double-blind, randomized, and sham-controlled, eliminating the possibility that participants' expectations influenced the results. The consistent increase in REM sleep across different wireless technologies suggests a biological mechanism at work, not random variation. While the researchers cautiously note that increased REM sleep isn't necessarily harmful, the reality is that any technology capable of altering fundamental brain processes during sleep deserves serious attention. Your brain doesn't distinguish between 'safe' and 'unsafe' EMF exposure levels - it simply responds to the electromagnetic signals it receives.
Exposure Details
- SAR
- 2 W/kg
- Source/Device
- Mobile Phones:900 MHz GSM and WCDMA/UMTS
- Exposure Duration
- 3 nights of 8 h
Exposure Context
This study used 2 W/kg for SAR (device absorption):
- 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
In a double-blind, randomized, sham-controlled cross-over study possible effects of electromagnetic fields emitted by pulsed Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) 900 and Wideband Code-Division Multiple Access (WCDMA)/Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (WCDMA/UMTS) devices on sleep were analysed.
Thirty healthy young men (range 18–30 years) were exposed three times per exposure condition while t...
Data analyses at the individual level indicate that RF-EMF effects are observed in 90% of the indivi...
The results underline that sleep of individuals can be affected differently. The observations found here may indicate an underlying thermal mechanism of RF-EMF on human REM sleep. Nevertheless, the effect of an increase in stage R sleep in one third of the individuals does not necessarily indicate a disturbance of sleep
Show BibTeX
@article{h_2015_effects_of_mobile_phone_85,
author = {Danker-Hopfe H and Dorn H and Bolz T and Peter A and Hansen ML and Eggert T and Sauter C},
title = {Effects of mobile phone exposure (GSM 900 and WCDMA/UMTS) on polysomnography based sleep quality: An intra- and inter-individual perspective},
year = {2015},
url = {https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0013935115301407},
}