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Sleep & Circadian Rhythm

Effects of electromagnetic fields emitted from W-CDMA-like mobile phones on sleep in humans.

No Effects Found

Nakatani-Enomoto S, Furubayashi T, Ushiyama A, Groiss SJ, Ueshima K, Sokejima S, Simba AY, Wake K, Watanabe SI, Nishikawa M, Miyawaki K, Taki M, Ugawa Y · 2013

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Three hours of 3G-like cell phone radiation before bedtime showed no detectable effects on sleep quality in this small study.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Japanese researchers exposed 19 volunteers to cell phone radiation similar to 3G networks for 3 hours before bedtime, then monitored their sleep using brain wave recordings and morning questionnaires. They found no differences in sleep quality, brain wave patterns, or how rested people felt the next morning between real radiation exposure and fake exposure sessions. This suggests that 3-hour exposures to this type of cell phone radiation don't measurably disrupt human sleep patterns.

Study Details

In this study, we investigated subjective and objective effects of mobile phones using a Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA)-like system on human sleep.

Subjects were 19 volunteers. Real or sham electromagnetic field (EMF) exposures for 3 h were perform...

No significant differences were observed between the two conditions in subjective feelings. Sleep pa...

We conclude that continuous wave EMF exposure for 3 h from a W-CDMA-like system has no detectable effects on human sleep.

Cite This Study
Nakatani-Enomoto S, Furubayashi T, Ushiyama A, Groiss SJ, Ueshima K, Sokejima S, Simba AY, Wake K, Watanabe SI, Nishikawa M, Miyawaki K, Taki M, Ugawa Y (2013). Effects of electromagnetic fields emitted from W-CDMA-like mobile phones on sleep in humans. Bioelectromagnetics. 2013 Aug 22. doi: 10.1002/bem.21809.
Show BibTeX
@article{s_2013_effects_of_electromagnetic_fields_3264,
  author = {Nakatani-Enomoto S and Furubayashi T and Ushiyama A and Groiss SJ and Ueshima K and Sokejima S and Simba AY and Wake K and Watanabe SI and Nishikawa M and Miyawaki K and Taki M and Ugawa Y},
  title = {Effects of electromagnetic fields emitted from W-CDMA-like mobile phones on sleep in humans.},
  year = {2013},
  doi = {10.1002/bem.21809},
  url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/bem.21809},
}
DOI: 10.1002/bem.21809

Cited By (34 papers)

View all 34 citing papers on Semantic Scholar

Quick Questions About This Study

No, Japanese researchers found that 3-hour exposures to W-CDMA-like cell phone radiation before bedtime had no detectable effects on human sleep patterns. The 2013 study monitored 19 volunteers using brain wave recordings and found no differences in sleep quality or morning alertness compared to fake exposures.
W-CDMA-like mobile phone signals do not disrupt brain wave activity during sleep, according to a controlled 2013 study. Researchers measured EEG power spectra and sleep stage percentages in 19 volunteers and found no significant differences between real radiation exposure and sham conditions throughout the night.
You can safely use 3G phones at least 3 hours before bedtime without measurable sleep effects. A 2013 Japanese study exposed volunteers to W-CDMA radiation for 3 hours before sleep and found no impact on sleep quality, brain waves, or how rested participants felt the next morning.
W-CDMA phone emissions do not change how rested you feel in the morning. The 2013 study by Nakatani-Enomoto and colleagues found no significant differences in subjective feelings or morning alertness between participants exposed to real W-CDMA radiation versus fake exposure sessions before bedtime.
All measured sleep parameters remained unaffected by continuous W-CDMA radiation exposure, including sleep stage percentages, EEG power spectra, and subjective sleep quality. The Japanese researchers concluded that 3-hour continuous wave EMF exposure from W-CDMA-like systems has no detectable effects on human sleep architecture or recovery.