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Brain & Nervous System177 citations

Exposure to pulse-modulated radio frequency electromagnetic fields affects regional cerebral blood flow.

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Huber R, Treyer V, Schuderer J, Berthold T, Buck A, Kuster N, Landolt HP, Achermann P. · 2005

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In healthy young men, 'handset-like' but not 'base-station-like' pulse-modulated RF EMF exposure increased relative cerebral blood flow in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex on the side of exposure.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers investigated the effects of radio frequency electromagnetic fields similar to those emitted by mobile phones on waking regional cerebral blood flow in 12 healthy young men. Positron emission tomography scans were taken after 30 min unilateral head exposure to pulse-modulated 900 MHz RF EMF, and a sham control condition was also included. Only the 'handset-like' signal, which had stronger low-frequency components, increased relative cerebral blood flow in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex on the side of exposure; the 'base-station-like' signal did not.

Why This Matters

A 'base-station-like' and a 'handset-like' signal were both delivered as pulse-modulated 900 MHz fields at a specific absorption rate of 1 W/kg. The effect on cerebral blood flow depended on the spectral power in the amplitude modulation of the RF carrier. The researchers noted that this finding supports a previous observation that pulse modulation of RF EMF is necessary to induce changes in the waking and sleep EEG. The researchers concluded that pulse modulation is crucial for RF EMF-induced alterations in brain physiology.

Exposure Details

SAR
1 W/kg
Source/Device
900 MHz
Exposure Duration
30 minutes

Exposure Context

This study used 1 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: 1 W/kgExtreme Concern - 0.1 W/kgFCC Limit - 1.6 W/kgEffects observed in the Extreme Concern range (Building Biology)FCC limit is 2 times higher than this level
A logarithmic frequency spectrum from 10 Hz to 100 GHz showing where this study's 900 MHz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 900 MHzPower lines50/60 Hz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

Study Details

We investigated the effects of radio frequency electromagnetic fields (RF EMF) similar to those emitted by mobile phones on waking regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in 12 healthy young men.

Two types of RF EMF exposure were applied: a 'base-station-like' and a 'handset-like' signal. Positr...

We observed an increase in relative rCBF in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex on the side of exposu...

This finding supports our previous observation that pulse modulation of RF EMF is necessary to induce changes in the waking and sleep EEG, and substantiates the notion that pulse modulation is crucial for RF EMF-induced alterations in brain physiology.

Cite This Study
Huber R, Treyer V, Schuderer J, Berthold T, Buck A, Kuster N, Landolt HP, Achermann P. (2005). Exposure to pulse-modulated radio frequency electromagnetic fields affects regional cerebral blood flow. Eur J Neurosci. 21(4):1000-1006, 2005.
Show BibTeX
@article{r_2005_exposure_to_pulsemodulated_radio_1038,
  author = {Huber R and Treyer V and Schuderer J and Berthold T and Buck A and Kuster N and Landolt HP and Achermann P.},
  title = {Exposure to pulse-modulated radio frequency electromagnetic fields affects regional cerebral blood flow.},
  year = {2005},
  
  url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15787706/},
}
PubMed: 15787706

Cited By (177 papers)

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Quick Questions About This Study

The study included 12 healthy young men.
Positron emission tomography scans were used to measure regional cerebral blood flow after exposure.
Only the 'handset-like' RF EMF exposure affected cerebral blood flow; the 'base-station-like' exposure did not.
An increase in relative cerebral blood flow was observed in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex on the side of exposure.
The researchers said pulse modulation is crucial for RF EMF-induced alterations in brain physiology.