Infertility Calling: Do Cell Phones Affect Male Fertility?
By: David Karabinus, Ph.D., HCLD
Cell phones have become an inescapable part of our lives. An estimated 700 million are in use in the US and perhaps 2 billion in use worldwide. They are essentially small radio transmitters and receivers and, as such, expose users to radio frequency (RF) energy or electromagnetic frequency (EMF) radio waves. This is the same energy, at a much, much higher level, that cooks the food in a microwave oven. Every time a call comes in or goes out the cell phone either collects or emits the RF/EMF energy via its antenna.
Whether cell phones can affect male fertility has received much recent attention. Rats whose hind quarters were exposed for 30 minutes to RF energy for 30 minutes at about 25 times the level permitted for cell phones by the FCC exhibited an increase in the number of abnormally shaped sperm that were produced. Another study reported that rats exposed to cell phones for 6 hours daily for 18 weeks produced a higher proportion of dead sperm than unexposed rats. Although the sperm from the exposed rats were normally shaped, most of the sperm formed clumps. In another study, rats exposed to cell phones for one hour a day for 11 weeks exhibited no effects on their sperm. In humans, studies have shown decreased semen quality with increased cell phone use. Sperm exposed to a cell phone show reduced numbers of rapidly swimming sperm and increased numbers of non-swimming sperm. Men who had never used a cell phone produced more normally shaped sperm than those who had used cell phones more than 2 years. Another study showed men who used cell phones more than 4 hours per day produced lower amounts of live sperm, swimming (motile) sperm, and normally shaped sperm compared to those that did not use cell phones. This study also showed that the impact on these sperm traits increased as cell phone use increased from 0- to 2- to 4- to more than 4 hours per day.
The results of studies show that cell phone use can adversely affect the quality of sperm a man produces. The effects appear most pronounced with very high daily use. More study is needed to identify how these effects occur, or even if they are real and not a characteristic of men who spend much of their time on the cell phone. In the mean time, try to stay off the phone.
Cell phones have become an inescapable part of our lives. An estimated 700 million are in use in the US and perhaps 2 billion in use worldwide. They are essentially small radio transmitters and receivers and, as such, expose users to radio frequency (RF) energy or electromagnetic frequency (EMF) radio waves. This is the same energy, at a much, much higher level, that cooks the food in a microwave oven. Every time a call comes in or goes out the cell phone either collects or emits the RF/EMF energy via its antenna.
Whether cell phones can affect male fertility has received much recent attention. Rats whose hind quarters were exposed for 30 minutes to RF energy for 30 minutes at about 25 times the level permitted for cell phones by the FCC exhibited an increase in the number of abnormally shaped sperm that were produced. Another study reported that rats exposed to cell phones for 6 hours daily for 18 weeks produced a higher proportion of dead sperm than unexposed rats. Although the sperm from the exposed rats were normally shaped, most of the sperm formed clumps. In another study, rats exposed to cell phones for one hour a day for 11 weeks exhibited no effects on their sperm. In humans, studies have shown decreased semen quality with increased cell phone use. Sperm exposed to a cell phone show reduced numbers of rapidly swimming sperm and increased numbers of non-swimming sperm. Men who had never used a cell phone produced more normally shaped sperm than those who had used cell phones more than 2 years. Another study showed men who used cell phones more than 4 hours per day produced lower amounts of live sperm, swimming (motile) sperm, and normally shaped sperm compared to those that did not use cell phones. This study also showed that the impact on these sperm traits increased as cell phone use increased from 0- to 2- to 4- to more than 4 hours per day.
The results of studies show that cell phone use can adversely affect the quality of sperm a man produces. The effects appear most pronounced with very high daily use. More study is needed to identify how these effects occur, or even if they are real and not a characteristic of men who spend much of their time on the cell phone. In the mean time, try to stay off the phone.
posted by Kathleen, Contributing Editor at
8:25 AM
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