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Oxidative Stress102 citations

900 MHz pulse-modulated radiofrequency radiation induces oxidative stress on heart, lung, testis and liver tissues

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Esmekaya MA, Ozer C, Seyhan N · 2011

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Twenty minutes of daily cell phone-level radiation caused measurable oxidative damage across multiple organs in just three weeks.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers exposed rats to cell phone radiation (900 MHz) for 20 minutes daily over three weeks. All major organs showed increased oxidative damage and reduced antioxidant protection compared to unexposed animals, suggesting brief daily mobile phone exposure may harm multiple body systems.

Why This Matters

This study adds important evidence to our understanding of how radiofrequency radiation affects cellular health across multiple organ systems. The researchers used a SAR level of 1.2 W/kg, which falls within the range of typical cell phone exposure during calls (most phones emit between 0.5-1.6 W/kg). What makes these findings particularly concerning is that oxidative stress is a fundamental mechanism underlying many chronic diseases, from cardiovascular problems to cancer. The fact that just 20 minutes of daily exposure for three weeks produced measurable damage in heart, lung, liver, and reproductive tissues suggests our current safety standards may not adequately protect against biological harm. The study's strength lies in its measurement of multiple biomarkers of oxidative damage, providing a comprehensive picture of how RF radiation disrupts cellular function at the molecular level.

Exposure Details

SAR
1.2 W/kg
Source/Device
900 MHz
Exposure Duration
20 min/day for three weeks

Exposure Context

This study used 1.2 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 ContextA logarithmic scale showing exposure levels relative to Building Biology concern thresholds and regulatory limits.Study Exposure Level in ContextThis study: 1.2 W/kgExtreme Concern0.1 W/kgFCC Limit1.6 W/kgEffects observed in the Extreme Concern range (Building Biology)FCC limit is 1x higher than this exposure level

Study Details

We aimed to investigate whether 900 MHz pulse-modulated radiofrequency (RF) fields induce oxidative damage on lung, heart and liver tissues.

We assessed oxidative damage by investigating lipid peroxidation (malondialdehyde, MDA), nitric oxid...

MDA and NOx levels were increased significantly in liver, lung, testis and heart tissues of the expo...

Results of our study showed that pulse-modulated RF radiation causes oxidative injury in liver, lung, testis and heart tissues mediated by lipid peroxidation, increased level of NOx and suppression of antioxidant defense mechanism

Cite This Study
Esmekaya MA, Ozer C, Seyhan N (2011). 900 MHz pulse-modulated radiofrequency radiation induces oxidative stress on heart, lung, testis and liver tissues Gen Physiol Biophys. 30(1):84-89, 2011.
Show BibTeX
@article{ma_2011_900_mhz_pulsemodulated_radiofrequency_524,
  author = {Esmekaya MA and Ozer C and Seyhan N},
  title = {900 MHz pulse-modulated radiofrequency radiation induces oxidative stress on heart, lung, testis and liver tissues},
  year = {2011},
  
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/med/21460416},
}

Quick Questions About This Study

Researchers exposed rats to cell phone radiation (900 MHz) for 20 minutes daily over three weeks. All major organs showed increased oxidative damage and reduced antioxidant protection compared to unexposed animals, suggesting brief daily mobile phone exposure may harm multiple body systems.