So far,
human experimental research has failed to yield consistent evidence of an
effect of RF on humans at permitted exposure levels. This has lead many to
conclude that effects are either non-existent or too weak to detect.
However, at least two issues have not been adequately addressed by the
research so far.
The first, as
highlighted in numerous technical reviews, stems from the use of only
healthy young adults in most human studies. Hence, the effect of RF on
other populations that might be more susceptible to stressors (such as
youths the elderly or self-reported hypersensitives) cannot be commented upon.
The second and related issue is that research has been based on the
assessment of group averages, which assumes that RF bioeffects are similar
for everyone and are therefore detectable as differences in group averages.
However, if responses to RF are different for different people then
bioeffects will be masked, and so we are conducting research to determine
whether there are any consistent effects of RF within individuals.
Current Projects
Sensitivity of different
age groups to RF Bioeffects Pilot Study
Project leader:
A/Prof.
Rodney Croft
NHMRC funded research staff: Ms.
Jessica Dyson, Mr. Barry O’Neill, Ms. Sumie Leung,
Ms. Denise Hamblin
Aims:
This study will determine whether there are RF-effects
that are expressed differently in different age-groups. We will test the
effect of RF on several measures (heart rate, blood pressure, resting
electroencephelogram (EEG), event related potentials (ERP's), cognition, and subjective symptoms) on three groups (youths, young
adults, and older adults).
Methods: A double blind,
counterbalanced, crossover design was employed where 24 young adults
attended two sessions 1 week apart. In both sessions, participants performed
auditory oddball tasks, visual “n-back” working memory tasks, and resting
tasks while electroencephalogram (EEG), heart rate, galvanic skin response,
and respiration was recorded. A mobile phone was mounted over the temporal
region during these recordings, and set to active one week and inactive for
the other week. When active, the MP transmitted for 90 min using a
continuous 902 MHz electromagnetic signal, with a mean power output of 250mW
and a peak power output of 2W.
Results: Expected in 2006
Sensitivity of different age groups to Radiofrequency
Bioeffects
Project leader:
A/Prof.
Rodney Croft
NHMRC funded research staff: Ms.
Jessica Dyson, Mr. Barry O’Neill, Ms. Sumie Leung.
Aims:
To test the effect of RF on several measures (heart rate,
blood pressure, resting EEG, ERP, cognition, and subjective symptoms) as a
function of age-group (youths, young adults, and older adults; n= 24 per
group).
Methods:
This project will use an identical
protocol to the previous study except that:
·
Participants will be
tested under three conditions: during exposure to a 2G phone signal, a 3G
phone signal, and sham conditions. One condition will be administered per
week according to a double-blind, counterbalanced, cross-over design.
·
This study will not
use alternate forms, as those used in the pilot study were not statistically
validated and were therefore likely to introduce rather than remove error
variance due to practice effects.
·
Participants would
complete a single auditory oddball task, the difficulty of which would be
chosen through baseline testing.
·
The battery will be
shortened to make the experiment more tolerable for participants.
·
The cradle used to
hold the mobile phone next to the participant’s head will be redesigned to
be more comfortable.
·
Auditory stimuli will
be delivered via computer speakers rather than foam ear phones inserted into
the ear canal. This will remove between-session variability in the sound
pressure level of auditory stimuli due to variation in insertion depth of
the ear phones.
Results: Expected in 2007
Radiofrequency Hypersensitivity
Project leader:
A/Prof.
Rodney Croft
NHMRC funded research staff:
Ms.
Jessica Dyson, Mr. Barry O’Neill, Ms. Sumie Leung.
Aims:
To scientifically validate the RF-bioeffects reported by
self-reported ‘hypersensitives’. To see whether (i) “hypersensitive”
participants can accurately identify when the mobile phone is turned on (ii)
experience more subjective effects than control subjects and (iii)
experience more numerous or more severe subjective effects when the mobile
phone is turned on than when it is turned off (sham exposed)
Methods:
Self-reported
“hypersensitives” and non-sensitive “control” participants will attend two
sessions, a week apart. In both sessions, a mobile phone will be placed
over the left temporal region while several measures are obtained (heart
rate, blood pressure, resting EEG, ERP, cognition, and subjective
symptoms). For each participant, the phone will be set to emit an RF field
one week (895 MHz, average power 250 mW, pulse modulated at 217 Hz, average
SAR 0.11 W/kg) and will not emit a signal the other week (i.e. “sham”
exposure). Exposure conditions will be administered according to a
double-blind, fully counterbalanced cross-over design.
Results: Expected in 2007
Consistency of RF effects - Sleep
Project leader:
A/Prof.
Rodney Croft
NHMRC funded research staff:
Ms Sarah Loughran (PhD candidate, Swinburne University)
Background:
The ACRBR have previously reported a possible delay in melatonin production,
decreased rapid eye movement sleep latency and increased
electroencephalogram spectral power in 11.5-12.25 Hz frequency range in the
initial part of sleep following exposure to mobile phone emissions for 30
mins (0.25 W average power) prior to going to bed in adult human volunteers
(n = 55 for melatonin measurements; n = 50 for EEG measurements).
Examination of individual responses is suggestive of a small group of
“responders.”
Aim: to see whether the responses
shown within individual participants from this first study could be
reproduced.
Methods:
Participants from the first study will be invited for
retesting to determine whether they respond to RF in the same way as they
did in the first study. Specifically, we will attempt to recruit:10
“non-responders” (people who had no change in alpha due to RF), 10
“alpha-increasers” (people who had an increase in the alpha/sleep spindle
range), and 10 “alpha-decreasers” (people who had a decrease in the
alpha/sleep spindle range due to RF exposure). This study will use a
similar protocol to that used in the first study and will examine a variety
of parameters relating to sleep EEG and melatonin production.
Results: Expected in 2007
Consistency of RF effects – Neural function in human
volunteers.
Project leader:
A/Prof.
Rodney Croft
NHMRC funded research staff:
Mr. Barry O'Neill (Research Assistant)
Background: Studies have
failed to yield consistent evidence of RF-effects in human volunteers.
Reported effects have been infrequent, inconsistent in direction and
difficult to replicate. This has led many to conclude that effects are
either non-existent or too subtle to detect. However, previous research has
been based on the assessment of group averages, in which opposing RF effects
in different individuals may have cancelled out and resulting in a false
null finding.
Methods:
Measures will be obtained from a sample of healthy young
adults and to group them according to RF response magnitude (stage 1). These
‘strong-’ and ‘non-’ responders would then be retested (stage 2) to
determine whether the ‘strongs’ continue to exhibit a larger RF effect.
Further, stage 2 testing will be more extensive, with subjects engaged in 7
mobile phone and 7 sham 20-min exposures (double-blind; order
counterbalanced and randomly assigned). This will give extra information in
that there will be
Results: Expected in 2007
The effect of caffeine vs. RF on neural function in human
volunteers
Project leader:
A/Prof.
Rodney Croft
NHMRC funded research staff:
Mr. Barry O'Neill (Research Assistant), Lorraine Valladares (Masters student
RMIT)
Background: Caffeine is the
most widely consumed behaviourally active substance in the world. The
diuretic, respiratory, cardiovascular and central stimulant properties of
caffeine have been known for decades. Thus in addition to societal use in
beverages, caffeine has been used therapeutically to treat narcolepsy,
asthma and apnoea, and as an analgesic adjunct. Due to its known effects on
various physiological and neuropsychological measures, this study will use
caffeine as a positive control in the examination of the bioeffects of RF.
Aims: The present study has
been designed as a positive control for the parallel study investigating the
effects of 3rd generation (3G) technologies to allow a level of
comparison between any resultant 3G effects and the effects of a common
metric (caffeine consumption) on the same protocol employed to test for
these 3G effects.
Methods:
This study will employ a placebo controlled,
double-blind, fully counterbalanced and repeated measures design, ensuring
that neither the participant nor primary investigator will be aware of the
order of experimental condition over the two testing sessions.
On testing days each participant would have a
range of electrophysiological measures recorded while they engaged in a
battery of sensory/cognitive tasks, after having consumed either caffeine or
placebo condition (with 1 week between these two conditions).
Results: Expected in 2007
ELF modulated RF radiation influence on human
central nervous system
Project leader:
Prof Irena Cosic, Dr Dean
Cvetkovic
NHMRC funded research staff:
Nicholas Perentos, Masters of Engineering candidate RMIT
Background: Mobile
phone antennas emit extremely low frequency pulse modulated radiofrequency
radiation, while their batteries emit extremely low frequency radiation. It
is unknown which of these components, if any, are able to affect the human
brain and whether pulse modulation is necessary for RF to have an effect.
Aims:
to examine and
compare the effects of three different types of mobile phone radiation on the
human central nervous system as indexed by electroencephalogram (EEG) and
other physiological measurements.
The
radiations are:
1)
Extremely low frequency pulse
modulated radio frequencies (ELF PM RF),
2)
Pure radio frequencies and
3)
Pulsed extremely low frequencies
only.
Results: Expected in 2007
Influence of electromagnetic emissions from mobile phones on nervous
function in the human brain and heart
Project leader:
Howard D’Costa, PhD
candidate
NHMRC funded research staff:
Prof. Irena Cosic, Mr Ray McKenzie, Dr Vitas Anderson
Background:
This research investigates
the influence of mobile phone electromagnetic exposures on the nervous
function in the human brain and heart. Pulsed continuous wave (CW)
radiofrequency exposures are produced near to the human head using a model
mobile phone during the simultaneous monitoring of brain wave activity and
heart function. Brain wave activity is measured by electroencephalograph
(EEG) and heart function is measured by acquisition of the
electrocardiograph (ECG) and a blood pressure comparative (PPG). As far as
possible methodologies employed are consistent with previous reported
studies in order to allow assessment, and use standardised quantifiable
metrics so that biological significance of the data can be meaningfully
interpreted. Thus far, the total projected number of 100 people have
participated in the experimental stages of this study. The outcomes of the
project aim to address uncertainties in the present data that are of concern
to national and international regulatory and health agencies. The results
of this investigation are due to be sent a reputable journal in the very
near future.
Results: Expected in 2007