Cell phones accused of damaging sleep

I have a vegan friend who has always distrusted cell phones, and refuses to use one. I used to laugh at this, likening it to my father's early misgivings about microwave ovens. When we got our first microwave in the 1980s (as a gift), Dad would hurry out of the kitchen whenever it was running, eager to protect his body from unbidden assault by the strange waves.

I always thought my vegan friend's mistrust of cell phones was like that, just an overcautious reaction to unfamiliar technology. Eventually, I thought, he'll come around and see that there's nothing to worry about.

But maybe his idea isn't so funny, after all. Recent research funded by the mobile phone industry, and published by Progress in Electromagnetics Research Symposium at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology suggests that cell phones are associated with poorer sleep architecture, as well as other health complaints.

While the study was small (71 participants), its design included a "placebo" type control group - a group of people who thought they were receiving cell phone radiation, but actually got none. The placebo group had shorter sleep latencies and more deep sleep than the radiation group. In addition, the group who received the radiation had more complaints of headaches and confusion than the placebo group.

A couple of weeks ago, my blog addressed the link between electronic devices in the bedroom and daytime sleepiness among teens. This new research is another intriguing piece of that same puzzle. Even if the cell phone doesn't lure kids to stay up past their bedtime, or ring in the middle of the night, maybe its electromagnetic effects could still be destructive to their slumber.

Okay, so maybe my dad and I are more alike than I thought... Because for now, I think I'll ban my cell phone from the bedroom. And use the land line for all my evening conversations. Better safe than sorry, right?