Cellphones Harm Worms - What Do They Do to Us?

February 14, 2002

Cellphones Harm Worms-What Do They Do to Us?

12-Feb-2002

The safety of cellphones is in question following the discovery that their

emissions have an unexpected effect on living creatures. This finding

refutes the theory that heating from mobile phone signals is their only

threat to brain cells.

In lab tests, British scientists have found that microwave emissions typical

of cellphones make a type of worm called a nematode more fertile. Why this

happens is unclear and there's no suggestion that human fertility could be

affected. But the research is important because it reveals, for the first

time, that biological effects are possible without any warming of tissues.

Until now, regulations designed to protect people from microwave radiation,

including from cellphones, have been based on avoiding heating from the

microwave radiation. Microwaves don't have enough energy to break even weak

chemical bonds inside our cells, so scientists believe they cannot do any

damage unless they are strong enough to heat up the cells. But a team led by

de Pomerai at the University of Nottingham has discovered that

cellphone radiation has this mysterious effect on nematode worms, that can't

be explained by heating.

Nematodes were used for the testing because their cell function is

understood very well. De Pomerai's team found that exposing nematode worms

to microwaves at frequencies and energies similar to those emitted by a

cellphone increases the number of worms that go on to produce eggs. This is

significant, says de Pomerai, because even mild heating makes most larvae

infertile as adults. " It would be difficult to explain this effect in terms

of heating, " he says.

, head of a British government group that is researching

cellphones, says, " These results are very important and potentially

far-reaching. Independent confirmation is crucial and we need this quickly. "

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