Mobile phone base stations and adverse health effects: phase 2 of a cross-sectional study with measured radio frequency electromagnetic fields

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the cross-sectional study was to test the hypothesis that exposure to continuous low-level radio frequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) emitted from mobile phone base stations was related to various health disturbances.

METHODS

For the investigation people living mainly in urban regions were selected from a nationwide study in 2006. In total, 3526 persons responded to a questionnaire (response rate 85%). For the exposure assessment a dosimeter measuring different RF-EMF frequencies was used. Participants answered a postal questionnaire on how mobile phone base stations affected their health and they gave information on sleep disturbances, headaches, health complaints and mental and physical health using standardised health questionnaires. Information on stress was also collected. Multiple linear regression models were used with health outcomes as dependent variables (n = 1326).

RESULTS

For the five health scores used, no differences in their medians were observed for exposed versus non-exposed participants. People who attributed adverse health effects to mobile phone base stations reported significantly more sleep disturbances and health complaints, but they did not report more headaches or less mental and physical health. Individuals concerned about mobile phone base stations did not have different well-being scores compared with those who were not concerned.

CONCLUSIONS

In this large population-based study, measured RF-EMFs emitted from mobile phone base stations were not associated with adverse health effects.

Mobile phone base stations and adverse health effects: phase 1 of a population-based, cross-sectional study in Germany

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this first phase of a cross-sectional study from Germany was to investigate whether proximity of residence to mobile phone base stations as well as risk perception is associated with health complaints.

METHODS

The researchers conducted a population-based, multi-phase, cross-sectional study within the context of a large panel survey regularly carried out by a private research institute in Germany. In the initial phase, reported on in this paper, 30,047 persons from a total of 51,444 who took part in the nationwide survey also answered questions on how mobile phone base stations affected their health. A list of 38 health complaints was used. A multiple linear regression model was used to identify predictors of health complaints including proximity of residence to mobile phone base stations and risk perception.

RESULTS

Of the 30,047 participants (response rate 58.6%), 18.7% of participants were concerned about adverse health effects of mobile phone base stations, while an additional 10.3% attributed their personal adverse health effects to the exposure from them. Participants who were concerned about or attributed adverse health effects to mobile phone base stations and those living in the vicinity of a mobile phone base station (500 m) reported slightly more health complaints than others.

CONCLUSIONS

A substantial proportion of the German population is concerned about adverse health effects caused by exposure from mobile phone base stations. The observed slightly higher prevalence of health complaints near base stations can not however be fully explained by attributions or concerns.

[Process and results of field work concerning the Federal Health Survey]

"I + G Gesundheitsforschung" was responsible for data acquisition and data processing of the survey, which included the production of the survey documents and the conceptualization and production of the operation manual. Furthermore, the institute's task was sample design and sample drawing. This article reports on the continuity and the results of the field work and includes experiences and realizations resulting from the field work. These might be helpful for similar surveys in the future and contribute to the improvement of the procedures.

Antibody Production in Silkworm Cells and Silkworm Larvae Infected with a Dual Recombinant Bombyx Mori Nuclear Polyhedrosis Virus

We have examined the efficiency of coexpression of two heterologous genes from a recombinant Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus for the production of antibodies in silkworm larvae. The cDNAs encoding the light and the heavy chains of a murine immunoglobulin, directed against lipoprotein I of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, were brought under the control of two separate copies of the viral polyhedrin promotor. Infection of silkworm cells with the recombinant baculovirus yielded a maximum of 6.4 micrograms/ml IgG2A in the culture supernatant 72 hours post infection, while 800 micrograms/ml IgG2A was found in the hemolymph of infected fifth instar silkworm larvae seven days after infection with the same construct. The recombinant antibody exhibited a similar antigen specificity and avidity to that of the monoclonal antibody derived from ascites fluid.