Pulsed high-frequency electromagnetic field affects human sleep and sleep electroencephalogram.

Borbely AA, Huber R, Graf T, Fuchs B, Gallmann E, Achermann P

Neurosci Lett 275(3):207-210, 1999

To investigate whether the electromagnetic field (EMF) emitted by digital radiotelephone handsets affects the brain, healthy, young subjects were exposed during an entire night-time sleep episode to an intermittent radiation schedule (900 MHz; maximum specific absorption rate (SAR) 1 W/kg) consisting of alternating 15-min on-15-min off intervals.

Compared with a control night with sham exposure, the amount of waking after sleep onset was reduced from 18 to 12 min. Spectral power of the electroencephalogram in non-rapid eye movement sleep was increased.

The maximum rise occurred in the 10-11 Hz and 13.5-14 Hz bands during the initial part of sleep and then subsided. The results demonstrate that pulsed high-frequency EMF in the range of radiotelephones may promote sleep and modify the sleep EEG.