Effects of electromagnetic field produced by mobile phones on the oxidant and antioxidant status of rats.
Elhag MA, Nabil GM, Attia AM. · 2007
View Original AbstractMobile phone radiation depleted rats' protective antioxidants by up to 66%, suggesting cellular defenses may be overwhelmed by EMF exposure.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed rats to mobile phone radiation for either short daily sessions (15 minutes for 4 days) or a single acute dose, then measured their antioxidant levels. Both exposure patterns dramatically reduced essential antioxidants like vitamin C (down 47-60%), vitamin E (down 33-66%), and key protective enzymes. The single acute exposure caused more severe damage than the repeated shorter exposures, suggesting that even brief intense EMF exposure can overwhelm the body's natural defenses against cellular damage.
Why This Matters
This study reveals a concerning pattern: mobile phone radiation appears to systematically deplete the body's antioxidant defenses, which are our first line of protection against cellular damage. The magnitude of these effects is striking - vitamin C levels dropped by nearly 60% and vitamin E by up to 66%. What makes this particularly relevant is that the fractionated exposure (15 minutes daily) mirrors how many people actually use their phones, yet still produced substantial antioxidant depletion.
The finding that acute exposure caused more severe damage than repeated shorter exposures offers important insight into EMF's biological effects. While the study doesn't specify exact exposure levels, it demonstrates that even relatively brief EMF exposure can overwhelm cellular protective mechanisms. This research adds to the growing body of evidence showing that EMF exposure creates oxidative stress - the same biological pathway implicated in aging, cancer, and numerous chronic diseases.
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study. Duration: 15 min day for four days
Study Details
This study was designed to investigate the effect of EMR produced by GSM Mobile Phones (MP) on the oxidant and antioxidant status in rats.
Rats were divided into three groups: (1) controls, (2) rats exposed to a fractionated dose of EMR (1...
A net drop in the plasma concentration of vitamin C (-47 and -59.8%) was observed in EMR-F and EMR-A...
On the basis of present results, it can be concluded that exposure to acute doses of EMR produced by mobile phones is more hazardous than that produced by fractionated doses of the same type of radiation.
Show BibTeX
@article{ma_2007_effects_of_electromagnetic_field_2055,
author = {Elhag MA and Nabil GM and Attia AM.},
title = {Effects of electromagnetic field produced by mobile phones on the oxidant and antioxidant status of rats.},
year = {2007},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19086584/},
}