Yet another study has found that carrying a cellular phone in close proximity to a man’s testicles reduces the sperm’s ability to swim toward the egg, and it decreases the number of sperm that are alive to try to fertilize the egg.
Researchers from the University of Exeter in England reviewed findings of 10 studies that examined how exposure to radio-frequency electromagnetic radiation from cell phones might affect male fertility when the phones are carried in a front pocket or clipped to the waist.
In men not exposed to cell phones, 50 to 85 percent of their sperm were able to move toward an egg with normal ability. That number decreased by an average of 8 percent for the sperm of men who had been exposed to cell phone radiation. A similar drop was seen in sperm viability — that is, the percentage of sperm that were alive — in the men who were exposed, versus those who were not. The effects of cell phone radiation on sperm concentration (number of sperm per unit of semen) were not clear from the review.
Researchers noted that most adults globally own cell phones, and about 14 percent of couples in middle- and high-income countries have trouble conceiving. The findings could be particularly important for men who are already on the borderline of infertility, said a news release that accompanied the review, which was published in June, 2014 in the journal Environment International.
A 2008 study by researchers from the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio had found similar results. In that study, researchers gathered semen samples from 32 men, and divided each sample into two parts. Half of the semen samples were placed 2.5 cm away from a cell phone with 850 MHz frequency (most cell phones used in the United States are 850-900 MHz).
Sperm that had been exposed to cell phone radiation were found to have higher numbers of free radicals. These are atoms or molecules that can be formed when oxygen reacts with certain molecules; free radicals are highly reactive and will bind to cell tissues, causing damage to the cell or even death. As in the English study, the Ohio study also found that sperm that had been exposed to cell phone radiation had lower motility (ability to move and swim) and viability.
The Cleveland Clinic study was actually looking to assess whether hands-free devices such as the Bluetooth were safe in terms of testicle and sperm exposure to cell phone radiation. Researchers concluded that the hands-free devices might address safety concerns about placing cell phones next to ears, with respect to brain cancer, but that they did not appear to be safe for sperm when phone unit is carried near the testicles.
Previous studies to examine the effects of cell phone radiation on sperm have been conducted in a number of countries; many have reached similar conclusions as the two studies noted above, when men carried their phones in their front pockets or clipped to their belts. Some studies have also found reduced numbers of sperm when phones are carried that close to the testicles. One study also found that the longer the men talked on their phones daily and carried them on their hip or waist, the greater the percentage of sperm that were dead or had low motility. (Source: Environmental Working Group.)
By Marc Courtiol