Cellphone radiation boosts brain activity, according to new research, but whether that's bad, neutral or possibly even good is still anyone's guess. Those concerned about cellphones and health counsel extra caution. "Most people are clueless about how cellphones work," says Devra Lee Davis of Environmental Health Trust. "Basically, they are two-way microwave radios that use the same frequencies as a microwave oven. You can boil water in a microwave in two minutes."An issue that periodically makes its way into public discourse -- the impact and possible dangers to brain development and health posed by the ubiquitous use of cellphones -- is being revisited thanks to a newly published scientific study in The Journal of the American Medical Association.
However, rather than offering any definitive answers, the new research, led by Nora D. Volkow of the National Institutes of Health, raises more questions. Volkow and colleagues found that 50 minutes of cellphone use was associated with increased brain glucose metabolism -- a marker of brain activity -- in the region closest to the phone antenna. What that means is unclear.
The research team was not unaware of the health controversies surrounding cellular telephones, particularly concerns that exposure to the devices' radiofrequency-modulated electromagnetic fields could potentially have carcinogenic effects.
Epidemiologic studies of the association between cellphone use and the prevalence of brain tumors have been inconsistent, they pointed out in their report, with some, but not all, showing increased risk. That issue, in short, is unresolved.
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