Cell phones are the most important electronic devices in our lives. They stream shows, send and receive texts, make calls, they do basically everything. However, with a lot of the good there’s also the bad.
Cell phones give off Radio Frequencies (RF) that can enter our bodies. These RFs have the ability to change our insides without us even noticing. Out of the entire body, the brain is affected the most. When you’re on a call, the phone is usually right next to your ear. This means that it is also very close to your brain. Excessive exposure of radio frequencies to the brain can cause many health concerns. Ranging from minimally intrusive to life-threatening, here are the most notable ones:
Weakening of the Brain-Blood Barrier and Hippocampus
The brain-blood barrier (BBB) is a selective membrane. It allows the selective exchange of substances between the brain and blood. It inhibits the passage of pathogens and other harmful substances.
A study was conducted by Dr. Leif Salford on rats to observe the effects of RFs on their BBBs. After exposing them to RFs for 3 hours a day for 28 days, they saw concerning results. The BBB and hippocampus (responsible for spatial and emotional memory and stress response), among other parts of the brain, deteriorated.
Brain Tumors and Cancers
Tumors and cancers are one of the most deadly health problems caused by RFs. Extended exposure of RF is said to have harmful effects on the brain and other parts of the body.
RF in cell phones can cause cancerous brain tumors (gliomas), non-cancerous tumors (meningiomas), non-cancerous tumors of the brain connecting to the ear (vestibular schwannomas), and tumors of the salivary glands.
In the beginning, there wasn’t enough evidence to conclude that RFs caused cancer. Then, a team of researchers at the National Toxicology Program conducted a 10-year study on rats. The study concluded that exposure to the RFs emitted by phones caused both brain cancer (glioma) and nerve tissue damage (schwannomas).
Headaches
Due to the amount of screen time that people get, headaches are the most common form of harm from phones. This isn’t due to the Radio Frequencies but it’s because of a couple of other reasons.
When using a cell phone, people are often hunched over. This creates tension in your spine and your neck. For an extended period of time, it can turn into a headache. Additionally, the blue light that is emitted from phones causes the eyes to become fatigued. The constant staring without giving your eyes a break strains them.
The number of hours you use your cell phone is directly linked to the frequency of headaches. Non-stop use can even cause migraines. Both of these types of headaches and migraines appear after extended cell phone usage.
Cell phones give off what is known as “blue light”. Blue light is a type of light that humans are able to see with the naked eye that comes from screens. Over time, this blue light can cause blurry vision, eyestrain, dry eye, macular degeneration, and even cataracts. Wearing blue light glasses can help reduce this type of strain.
Sleep Disturbance
As precious as sleep is, many people will ruin it without even noticing it. Numerous people will use their phones right before they sleep without thinking about the harm it brings.
Using your phone before bed reduces the production of melatonin. Without melatonin in your body, instead of feeling sleepy, you’ll become more alert. The blue light emitted from phone screens messes with your circadian rhythm and makes your body think it’s still daytime. This has an adverse effect on your slow-wave and rapid eye movement (REM), 2 important stages of sleep.
Children are even more sensitive to blue light and the effects are magnified. Nonetheless, using a phone before you sleep will leave you feeling tired when you wake up.
Higher Absorbance of Radiation in Children
Since children are small, their skulls are thinner. When they’re exposed to the same RF as adults, they absorb more of it, quickly. A child’s brain decomposition is 2 times more than an adult when absorbing RF energy. Children therefore, tend to develop many behavioral and emotional problems early on.
Studies have shown that children that receive high amounts of RF may develop ADHD. Mothers that used cell phones excessively gave birth to babies with higher levels of lead in their blood.
Children that are exposed to high levels of RF energy have an increased risk of developing numerous tumors and cancers as well.
