#889: More on cell phone use during pregnancy
Comments from Cindy Sage:
Mothers”™ cell phone use during pregnancy may cause behavioral problems in children.
May 14, 2008
It would not be surprising that cell phone use by mothers-to-be can trigger inflammatory conditions leading to altered brain development in the fetus, which in turn might lead to behavioral disorders later in the child.
The BioInitiative Report (Chapter 8 – Immune Function) reports a long history of studies documenting allergic and inflammatory conditions with EMF exposure. Inflammatory responses to illness in mothers during pregnancy has alrready been suggested as a plausible biological mechanism for altered brain development in the child, with potential impacts on mental health (Scientific American, April 2008, Melinda Wenner). Cytokine production is an inflammatory response in the mother to infection, and may be triggered by other environmental exposures including EMF. Cytokine production is known to affect neurons in the developing brain of the fetus.
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=infected-with-insanity&print=true
Prenatal exposure to cell phone radiation, either by indirect effect on the immune system of the mother, or by direct effect of cell phone radiation on the fetus has enormous public health consequences.
If it is phone-to-fetus exposure that is important, it might be the ELF component of the exposure (from battery switching of the phone) that is important rather than the RF component which is presumably very low. We reported in 2007 that ELF levels from cell phones and PDAs can produce excessively high ELF emissions when worn on or close to the body (Sage CL Johansson O Sage SA. Personal digital assistant (PDA) cell phone units produce elevated extremely-low frequency electromagnetic field emissions . Bioelectromagnetics 28, No.5, July 2007).
In either case, these effects, if true, show that existing public safety limits are inadequate for the fetus.This is one more important study documenting the fact that new, biologically-based limits are needed.
Cindy Sage
Co-Editor
BioInitiative Report
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