Behavioral teratologic studies using microwave radiation: is there an increased risk from exposure to cellular phones and microwave ovens?
Jensh RP · 1997
View Original AbstractPrenatal microwave exposure altered brain development in rat offspring, with higher frequencies showing clearer neurological effects than typical cell phone frequencies.
Plain English Summary
Pregnant rats exposed to microwave radiation at cell phone and microwave oven frequencies showed concerning effects in offspring. The highest frequency (6000 MHz) caused delayed development, reduced birth weight, and altered brain function, suggesting certain microwave frequencies may affect developing brains.
Why This Matters
This 1997 study provides important early evidence that prenatal microwave exposure can affect brain development, particularly at higher frequencies. What's significant is that these effects occurred at non-thermal exposure levels, meaning the radiation wasn't hot enough to cause tissue heating. The 6000 MHz frequency that showed the clearest effects is higher than typical cell phone frequencies (which operate around 800-2100 MHz), but the neurological changes observed - delayed eye opening, altered maze performance, and modified brain development - suggest the developing nervous system is particularly vulnerable to microwave radiation. The reality is that pregnant women today face multiple sources of RF exposure simultaneously, and this research indicates we should take precautionary measures during pregnancy to minimize unnecessary microwave exposure from devices like cell phones and WiFi routers.
Exposure Details
- SAR
- 10, 20, or 35 W/kg
- Source/Device
- 915 MHz, 2450 MHz, or 6000 MHz
Exposure Context
This study used 10, 20, or 35 W/kg for SAR (device absorption):
- 25x 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 objective of the investigations presented in this review was to determine if there are adverse effects due to chronic prenatal microwave exposure in rats at term and/or alterations in neonatal and adult offspring psychophysiologic development and growth.
Following the establishment of a nonhyperthermal power density level of microwave radiation, pregnan...
Animals exposed to 915 MHz did not exhibit any consistent significant alterations in any of the abov...
These results indicate that exposure to 6000 MHz radiation at this power density level may result in subtle long-term neurophysiologic alterations. However, in the absence of a hyperthermic state, the microwave frequencies tested, which included frequencies used in cellular phones and microwave ovens, do not induce a consistent, significant increase in reproductive risk as assessed by classical morphologic and postnatal psychophysiologic parameters.
Show BibTeX
@article{rp_1997_behavioral_teratologic_studies_using_1046,
author = {Jensh RP},
title = {Behavioral teratologic studies using microwave radiation: is there an increased risk from exposure to cellular phones and microwave ovens?},
year = {1997},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9241682/},
}