Brain Glucose Metabolism
Affected By
Cell Phone Use

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Cell Phone Sensitivity
September 26, 2011 | Harold Mandel
There has been a great deal of controversy about the safety
of cell phones due to concerns about how their use affects
the brain. Susan Jeffrey addresses this controversy for
Medscape Today in her article "Cell Phone Use Affects Brain
Glucose Metabolism." A new study has shown that the use of a
cell phone for as little as 50 minutes at a time appears to
affect brain glucose metabolism in the region which is
closest to the phone's antenna.
The researchers for this study used positron emission
tomography (PET) during cell phone use in the on and then
off positions. They discovered that although whole-brain
metabolism was not affected, metabolism was increased in the
orbitofrontal cortex and the temporal pole areas of the
brain while the cell phone was on, which are the areas that
are close to where phone's antenna meets the head.
Lead study author Nora D. Volkow, MD, from the National
Institute on Drug Abuse in Bethesda, Maryland has said "We
do not know what the clinical significance of this finding
is, both with respect to potential therapeutic effect of
this type of technology but also potential negative
consequences from cell phone exposure." However, in order to
play it safe
Dr. Volkow recommends using hands-free devices or
speaker-phone mode in order to avoid direct contact of the
telephone with the head.
Dr. Volkow has gone on to say that special caution may be
necessary for children and adolescents because their neural
tissue is still developing. The increasing use of cell
phones has raised the question of the effects of
radiofrequency-modulated electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs),
particularly of a carcinogenic nature. Epidemiologic studies
exploring the relationship between cell phones and brain
tumors have been inconsistent. Some, but not all studies
have found an increased risk of brain tumors. And so the
issue remains unresolved.
Dr. Volkow has noted that while the findings from this study
don't shed any light on the controversy of whether cell
phone exposure produces or does not produce cancer, "What it
does say to us is that the human brain is sensitive to this
electromagnetic radiation." Whether or not this has any
negative consequences demands further investigation.
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