Cell Phones and Brain Activity by Alexis Hood
Cell Phones and Brain Activity
Cell phones are a use in our daily lives. Everyone uses them basically 24 hours a day. But, do we know any of the risks that are taken while using these devices? Cell phones have an effect on our own brain. There are a few affects that caught my eye the most. These affects are how they affect our glucose metabolism in the brain, how they affect our brain waves, how they have an effect on brain cancer, the radiation that is harmful to us, and if cell phones affect bothers us civilians.
One way cell phones affect the brain is they affect our brain metabolism. Cells phones increase the percentage of the glucose metabolism in our brains. Now when a person is talking the glucose metabolism rises in the language center part of our brains about 10% [Sanders, 15]. Most of the time your glucose metabolism rises 7%. Researchers did an experimented how the cell phone effected the brain metabolism. Researchers started off by having a person talk on the phone. They checked the glucose metabolism levels before and after. The brain regions that were next to the cell phone had higher levels of glucose metabolism.(Sanders 14 The glucose metabolism had rosin 7%.(Sanders, 15) The study showed us that cell phones really do affect the percentage of glucose metabolism in our brain. Now this isn't that harmful to us as other affects, but it is still a worry to researchers. Researchers still don't know for a fact if this is harmful, but they believe that as the years go on it could be harmful to our children and teens. [Sanders, 17] Another study was put to the test using 47 healthy participants recruiting from the community.(Volkow, 31) The objective of this study was to evaluate if acute cell phone exposure affects brain glucose metabolism.(Volkow, 30) The main outcome measure was brain glucose metabolism was computed as absolute metabolism ( 100 g per min.) and as normalized metabolism (region/whole brain).( Volkow, 32) Now in the results whole-brain metabolism did not differ between off and on conditions, but the closer the antenna the higher the metabolism rose.(Volkow, 33) The conclusion was in healthy participants and compared to no exposure, 50-minute cell phone exposure was associated with increased brain metabolism in the region closest to the antenna.(Volkow, 34) Researchers say there are many easy solutions that don’t cost anything for the people that want to play it safe.(Sanders,17) Some ways they can reduced the glucose metabolism is my limiting their cell phone use, use speakerphone, or use a hands-free devise that connects to the cell phone with a wire.(Sanders,17) These would all help with the reduction of glucose metabolism in the brain. In addition to concerns about potential harmful risks of such exposure, such as brain cancer, change in brain function related to the use of cell phones is a concern. (Lai, 4)
Another way cell phones affect our brain is how they affect our brain waves. Our brain waves are sent off by brain tissue. Brain waves are always being sent through our body. Our brain waves are always active. Our cell phones are always increasing our brain waves. Even when you are asleep and your cell phone are off your brain waves increased [Rossi, 2005, 7]. Brain waves are increased due to the radiation of the cell phone. A study was used to test the increase of brain waves. A participant was exposed to a cell phone mounted to the right side of their head for 30 minutes before falling sleep. This cell phone was turned on. On another night they did the same thing, but the difference was this cell phone was turned off. The participant did not know which cell phone was turned on and which one was turned off. The most amazing discovery was the effect of the radiation to the brain waves was shown 20 to 30 minutes after the cell phone was turned off. [Rossi, 2005, 10] It was mostly increased in what is known as the alpha brain activity. (Rossi, 2005, 9) They still aren’t too sure as to what this means yet. The participant to this study even know this all was going on in his brain it did not appear that they weren’t sleeping normal. The participant had the same sleeping pattern each night they were tested on. (Rossi, 2005, 9) The health consequences or effects were not known while they were testing on the participant. (Rossi, 2005, 9). Another test was put on 469 male patients as well. (Muscat, 26) They aged from 18 to 80 years of age. (Muscat, 26) Their main outcome measure was the risk of brain cancer compared by use of cell phones, in the hours per month and years of use. (Muscat, 27) The conclusion was cell phones aren’t exactly the most common risk of brain cancer, but more studies are needed to account for longer induction periods, especially for slow-growing tumors and neuronal features. (Muscat, 29)This doesn't worry too many people because they don't know that this is what's going on in their brains, so it isn't too big of a worry to us. But, the study does prove that cell phones do affect our brain waves tremendously. Unfortunately there isn’t anything we can do to decrease this affect of brain waves.
A third way cell phones can affect the brain is how cell phones actually have an effect on brain cancer. This obsessive cell phone use began in Europe in the 1980’s. (Ahlbom, 1) It didn’t become a widespread use in the US until the 1990’s. (Ahlbom, 1) The biggest increase of cell phone usage in the US was in 2009 when at least 285 million subscribers started to use cell phones tremendously. Nevertheless, did people know that cell phones had a radiation that could possibly lead to the cause of brain cancer. Brain cancer is a very scary type of cancer because if this isn’t treated you could possibly die. Due to the radiation in cell phones this is what people think is the cause of brain cancer. Cell phones send off radio waves called RF energy. [Ahlbom, 1] This RF energy that is sent off by cell phones is said to be harmful. The recent study of RF energy being released onto the human body is now one of the few largest studies in the world. (Ahlbom, 1) Researchers think that it does have cancer risks. The concern is that cell phone's RF energy affects the brain and possibly other tissues in the head. [Ahlbom, 2] The way the RF energy is actually sent to the brain is through the antenna. The closer the antenna is the higher the RF energy you are getting. It is also said that this RF energy causes cancerous brain tumors which these could possibly kill you if not treated the right way. This RF energy overall is very dangerous for us and people are actually scared about this. Researchers are trying to find out more about this RF energy as we speak. These studies show that for a fact cell phones are definitely a leading cause in any type of brain cancer. A possible way that this could be a reduced factor is if people stop using their cell phones so much. But, since everyone needs their cell phones for work, school, e-mailing, ECT. no one will stop using their cell phones.
A fourth cause is the radiation that is caused and is harmful to us. Radiation consist of several types of subatomic particles, principally those called gamma rays, neutrons, electrons, and alpha particles, that shoot through space at very high speeds. Every single one of these particles is dangerous to us. There are many other possible risks of radiation that is harmful to us. Radiation is the leading cause of all brain affects and cancer risks. Cell phones use electromagnetic radiation in the microwave range, which some believe may have harmful to human health. Many scientists have studied possible health effects of mobile radiations. All of their studies have shown that the radiation hurts the brain. For the most part the cell phones get their radiation from the telephone towers that we see all over the place. So there is no way you can escape this radiation. The recent nuclear crisis in Japan is said to be sending off a radiation all over the world. This radiation could possibly be harmful to our brains.(Anonymous, 40) Another possible cause of radiation that is harmful to us is the colorless and odorless radioactive gas in our homes. This is caused by decaying uranium and radium in soil, rock and water. [Anonymous, 41>] There is another cause of radiation called nuclear medical procedure. This includes the medical procedure such as X-rays, CT scans, cancer radiation therapy ECT. Out of all the nuclear medical procedures you can have the worst is X-rays due to the fact they are considered carcinogenic. Another cause of radiation is frequent air travel. Traveling by airplane brings you closer to cosmic and solar rays. Also a cause of radiation is tanning booths. Tanning booths have a radiation that causes all kinds of cancer. Tanning booths are worse than our own sun. Radiation is a leading cause in all of our brain problems and people worry about this. All of these are causes of radiation that are harmful to us. Radiation is extremely harmful, but there is no way that it can kill you. The radiation is for the most part the cause of most of the problems we have with our cell phones.
The last is if any of these affects bother us at all. Cell phones do change your brain activity there is no doubt about that, but whether or not it is helpful or harmful is unknown to all researchers. (Barrow, 11) No one really cares whether or not cell phones affect you are not. Everyone still uses them no matter what. Cell phones are a daily use and no one wants to stop using them. People throughout the world carry cell phones and though they it increases the cortical region on the left side of the brain, we still use them cause we have no idea that it’s going on. (Barrow, 12) The same region of the brain that is used is always in the excited state for as long as an hour after using your cell phone, but no one knows that. (Barrow, 12 Cell phones will always have a strong affect on our brain activity though. [Doheny, 5]. Cell phones have been said to increase the metabolism of brain glucose in specific areas. [Doheny, 5] Researchers all have done studies on how cell phones affect the brain. There are so many ways it has affected the brain that no one can count how many. For the most part people don't care about what cell phones to do them, but some people on the other hand are worried about later on and life and how cell phones affect you then. If there was a massive risk of using cell phones researchers would be out there trying to find more evidence about it so they could tell us how to reduce the risk. (Barrow, 13) Since there isn’t anyone out there potentially there isn’t a risk that would possibly kill us. Cell phones are a daily use and everyone will always use them.
All in all, all these problems caused by cell phones are dangerous. Obviously no one cares about how dangerous they are. Everyone still uses them and will keep using them for a lot of our life time. In all of these paragraphs every single one shows studies that were put on people and how they were affected after words. The glucose metabolism rose, the brain waves were affected, the phones had an effect on brain cancer, the radiation was harmful to us, and cell phones did not bother us for the most part. Cell phones have just a big mess of problems but no one cares about them.