electromagnetic radiation

Radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation (RFEMR) and extremely low-frequency electromagnetic fields (ELF-EMF) have emerged as noteworthy sources of environmental pollution in the contemporary era. The potential biological impacts of RF-EMR and ELF-EMF exposure on human organs, particularly the central nervous system (CNS), have garnered considerable attention in numerous research studies.

This article presents a comprehensive yet summarized review of the research on the explicit/implicit effects of RF-EMR and ELF-EMF exposure on CNS performance.

Exposure to RF-EMR can potentially exert adverse effects on the performance of CNS by inducing changes in the permeability of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), neurotransmitter levels, calcium channel regulation, myelin protein structure, the antioxidant defense system, and metabolic processes. However, it is noteworthy that certain reports have suggested that RF-EMR exposure may confer cognitive benefits for various conditions and disorders. ELF-EMF exposure has been associated with the enhancement of CNS performance, marked by improved memory retention, enhanced learning ability, and potential mitigation of neurodegenerative diseases. Nevertheless, it is essential to acknowledge that ELF-EMF exposure has also been linked to the induction of anxiety states, oxidative stress, and alterations in hormonal regulation. Moreover, ELF-EMR exposure alters hippocampal function, notch signaling pathways, the antioxidant defense system, and synaptic activities.

The RF-EMR and ELF-EMF exposures exhibit both beneficial and adverse effects. Nevertheless, the precise conditions and circumstances under which detrimental or beneficial effects manifest (either individually or simultaneously) remain uncertain.

The advancement of telecommunication technology is vital for our wireless connectivity and networking across the world, but not at the expense of the lives of other organisms because their extinction follows us. This review article highlighted the various communication systems and technologies implemented and their implications. The relevant keywords used for this review, including fifth generation (5G), electromagnetic radiation (EMR), telephone tower, 5G impacts on lives, 5G impacts on human health, animals, and birds, were used for inclusive search on trustworthy citation databases listed in Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar from 1993 to 2022. The findings revealed that the radiations range between radio frequency and electromagnetic frequency is causing detrimental effects on different species including their fertility and fetus development. Experts reported that birds use the earth's EMR to navigate in their flight, but when they are exposed to weak or microwave radiation from the telecommunication towers, they deviate from their path, confused, and even die from telephone tower collisions. The new movement in protecting the bird population from EMR is creating an awareness of "air as a habitat" for birds, and research reports show that it is experimentally proven, that such radiations affect the birds' lives in many ways. Authors believe that these critical surveillance data would create awareness among the readers and researchers about the consequences to human health due to the extensive use of new generation telecommunication and networking technologies. The World Health Organization mentioned the harmful effects of EMR in their report. It shows that a diffuse collection of symptoms such as headaches, anxiety, suicide and depression, nausea, fatigue, and loss of libido may be caused due to low levels of exposure to EMR at home.

Some evidence shows that a pre-exposure to RF can mitigate the effects of subsequent exposures to high doses of ionizing radiation.

We aimed to assess the effect of a pre-exposure to non-ionizing RF radiation on survival, weight changes, food consumption, and water intake of lethally irradiated rats.

In this case-control study, we used a commercial mobile phone (GSM, 900/1800 MHz) as well as a 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi router as the sources of pre-exposure to RF radiation. Forty-eight rats were randomly divided into six groups of control, “8 Gy X-rays”, mobile phone, “mobile phone+8 Gy”, Wi-Fi, and “Wi-Fi+8 Gy”. Then, the survival fraction, weight loss, water, and food consumption changes were compared in different groups.

The survival analysis indicated that the survival rates in all of the exposed animals (“8 Gy X-rays”, “mobile phone+8 Gy”, “Wi-Fi+8 Gy”) were significantly lower than the control, “Wi-Fi”, and “mobile phone” groups. The changes in survival rates of “mobile+8 Gy”, “Wi-Fi+8 Gy”, and 8 Gy alone were not statistically significant. However, food and water intake were significantly affected by exposure to both RF pre-exposures and exposure to high dose ionizing radiation. 

To the best of our knowledge, the existence of a dose window for the induction of AR can be the cause of the lack of AR in our experiment. Our findings confirm that in a similar pattern with the adaptive responses induced by pre-exposure to ionizing radiation, the induction of adaptive response by RF-pre-exposures requires a minimum level of damage to trigger adaptive phenomena.

Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) are developing in scientific areas while biologic and immunologic effects have been proven in many studies. The purpose of the present study was to determine the effect of 50 Hz EMFs in the manner of the whole body exposure on the T-helper balance (Th1/Th2) in rats.

This experimental research evaluated the impact of the EMF on T-helper balance, including 30 rats that were randomly divided into 3 groups. The control group and experimental groups were exposed to 50 Hz EMF with the intensity of 0.5 mT for one and two month(s), respectively. At the end of the exposure period, blood samples were collected from the left ventricle of the hearts of the rats and the serum levels of interleukin 4 (IL-4) and interferon gamma (INF-γ) were measured by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and compared in all three groups.

The level of IL-4 and INF-γ showed a notable change (P=0.032) during one month of EMF exposure, indicating a shift of T-helper balance toward the Th2 arm, meaning more strong allergic reactions and weaker immune responses against tumors and many other diseases. After 2 months, the levels of cytokines and the balance of the T-helper came close to the baseline (the control group samples), representing the adaptive trends of T-helper balance in longer exposures.

The results of the present research revealed that EMFs produced important changes in IL-4 and INF-γ levels and affected the T-helper balance shift toward the Th2 arm, implying stronger allergic reactions and weaker defense against tumor and various other diseases. However, understanding the true nature of these changes and their actual health effects requires further studies.

Electromagnetic field (EMF) emitted by mobiles may affect the male reproductive system. Selenium, as an antioxidant, may protect against electromagnetic field-induced tissue damage. Theis study aimed to investigate the effects of selenium on rat testis exposed to electromagnetic fields.

Twenty-four male Wistar rats were divided into four groups, namely EM group (2100 MHZ), EM/SE group (2100 MHZ + selenium (0.2 mg/kg), SE group (selenium 0.2 mg/kg), CONT (control group). Serum LH, FSH, testosterone, leptin and aromatase levels, testis weight and volume index, sperm parameters (count and abnormal percent), seminiferous tubule diam eters, germinal epithelia thickness, immunoreactivity of leptin receptor and caspase-3 (for apoptotic cells in germinal epithelium) were investigated.

Our results showed that serum LH, FSH, GnRH, testosterone level, sperm count, germinal epithelium thickness, and seminiferous tubule diameter were significantly declined in the EM group compared with the CONT group (P<0.05). However, in the EM group, the serum leptin level, sperm abnormality, aromatase enzyme level, apoptotic cells, and leptin receptor were increased compared with the CONT group (P<0.05). Furthermore, an increase in sperm count, germinal epithelium thickness, seminiferous diameters, serum LH, FSH, and GnRH, and testosterone levels, and a significant decrease in sperm abnormality, leptin receptor and apoptotic cells in the EM/SE group compared with the EM group were also observed (P<0.05).

This study showed that electromagnetic radiation may have detrimental impacts on the male reproductive system, which can be prevented by use of selenium.

In electromagnetic shielding topics, the selection of suitable shields is an important subject and the lack of a specific ranking index for choosing protective shields causes problems in decision-making. Thus, this study proposes a quantitative index to rank and select electromagnetic shields in radiofrequency and microwave radiation.

The objective of this study was to construct a simple quantitative index to rank and select electromagnetic shields in radiofrequency and microwave radiation.

A cross-sectional study was designed. In this study, the construction of the ranking index was carried out in four main stages including stabilizing the concept, analytical structure and variable selection, weighing and combination of variables, and validating the index. In this study, the average, minimum, maximum, and standard deviation of shielding effectiveness were considered the main phenomenon variables. Finally, the ranking index and ranking difference index were created as percentages to rank and select electromagnetic shields.

In this study, a quantitative index was made as percentages called "Ranking Index" to rank and select the premier and preferable shield. Moreover, to indicate the difference in the shielding effectiveness of various shields, the "Difference Index" was made as percentages.

This study presented a simple quantitative index to rank electromagnetic shields. It could be used as a selection tool in radiation safety management. Moreover, this ranking index had a simple formula that could be calculated easily and quickly in excel software with high accuracy and low cost. In addition, it could be easily incorporated into a user-friendly tool for the ease of application. A case study of electromagnetic nanocomposite shields was conducted to use the Ranking Index, which showed its capability for ranking the shielding performance of studied electromagnetic shields. This index can create similar scientific literature to report the efficacy of electromagnetic shields and the selection of preferred shields in different research studies. It is suggested that future studies examine this quantitative index in other frequency ranges.