Use of mobile phones and changes in cognitive function in adolescents.
Thomas S, Benke G, Dimitriadis C, Inyang I, Sim MR, Wolfe R, Croft RJ, Abramson MJ. · 2010
View Original AbstractMobile phone use showed mixed effects on teenage thinking speed over one year, but researchers couldn't rule out statistical artifacts.
Plain English Summary
Researchers followed 236 Australian teenagers for one year to see how mobile phone use affected their thinking abilities. Students who used their phones more showed faster response times on computer-based cognitive tests, though the researchers noted this improvement might be due to statistical factors rather than actual phone effects. The study found changes in reaction speed but not accuracy on mental tasks.
Why This Matters
This study represents an important early attempt to track cognitive changes in adolescents over time, but its findings highlight the complexity of studying real-world EMF exposure. The researchers' honest acknowledgment that the observed improvements in response time might reflect statistical regression to the mean, rather than beneficial phone effects, demonstrates the challenges in this field. What makes this research particularly relevant is its focus on teenagers during a critical period of brain development when cognitive functions are still maturing. While the study didn't find clear evidence of harm, it also didn't establish that mobile phone use is beneficial for cognitive function. The reality is that measuring subtle cognitive effects requires larger sample sizes and longer follow-up periods than this study provided.
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study.
Study Details
The aim of this study is to observe Use of mobile phones and changes in cognitive function in adolescents.
Data were derived from the Australian Mobile Radiofrequency Phone Exposed Users' Study (MoRPhEUS) wh...
236 students participated in both examinations. The proportion of mobile phone owners and the number...
We have observed that some changes in cognitive function, particularly in response time rather than accuracy, occurred with a latency period of 1 year and that some changes were associated with increased exposure. However, the increased exposure was mainly applied to those who had fewer voice calls and SMS at baseline, suggesting that these changes over time may relate to statistical regression to the mean, and not be the effect of mobile phone exposure.
Show BibTeX
@article{s_2010_use_of_mobile_phones_2622,
author = {Thomas S and Benke G and Dimitriadis C and Inyang I and Sim MR and Wolfe R and Croft RJ and Abramson MJ.},
title = {Use of mobile phones and changes in cognitive function in adolescents.},
year = {2010},
url = {https://oem.bmj.com/content/67/12/861.short},
}