Effects of 2.45 GHz Wi-Fi exposure on sleep-dependent memory consolidation

Journal of sleep research · 2020 · Mixed · Low evidence

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MixedLow evidencePaper 1749

Study snapshot

PublicationJournal of sleep research · 2020

Study typerandomized_trial

Reported directionMixed

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Effects of 2.45 GHz Wi-Fi exposure on sleep-dependent memory consolidation Ana Bueno-Lopez, Torsten Eggert, Hans Dorn, Gernot Schmid, Rene Hirtl, Heidi Danker-Hopfe. Effects of 2.45 GHz Wi-Fi exposure on sleep-dependent memory consolidation. J Sleep Res. 2020 Nov 9;e13224. doi: 10.1111/jsr.13224. Abstract Studies have reported that exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) emitted by mobile telephony might affect specific sleep features. Possible effects of RF-EMF emitted by Wi-Fi networks on sleep- dependent memory consolidation processes have not been investigated so far. The present study explored the impact of an all-night Wi-Fi (2.45 GHz) exposure on sleep-dependent memory consolidation and its associated physiological correlates. Thirty young males (mean ± standard deviation [SD]: 24.1 ± 2.9 years) participated in this double-blind, randomized, sham-controlled crossover study. Participants spent five nights in the laboratory. The first night was an adaptation/screening night. The second and fourth nights were baseline nights, each followed consecutively by an experimental night with either Wi-Fi (maximum: psSAR10g = <25 mW/kg; 6 min average: <6.4 mW/kg) or sham exposure. Declarative, emotional and procedural memory performances were measured using a word pair, a sequential finger tapping and a face recognition task, respectively. Furthermore, learning-associated brain activity parameters (power spectra for slow oscillations and in the spindle frequency range) were analysed. Although emotional and procedural memory were not affected by RF-EMF exposure, overnight improvement in the declarative task was significantly better in the Wi-Fi condition. However, none of the post-learning sleep-specific parameters was affected by exposure. Thus, the significant effect of Wi-Fi exposure on declarative memory observed at the behavioural level was not supported by results at the physiological level. Due to these inconsistencies, this result could also be a random finding. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov Excerpts This work was supported by the Swiss Research Foundation for Electricity and Mobile Communication, FSM- Forschungsstiftung Strom und Mobilkommunikation (Project number A2016-01, 2017-2018). The authors declare no competing financial interests. The sponsor (FSM) did not have any influence on the study design, the data analysis or the manuscript. The manuscript reflects the opinions of the authors only.

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AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typerandomized_trial

Effect directionmixed

PopulationThirty young males (mean ± SD: 24.1 ± 2.9 years)

Sample size30

ExposureRF · 2450 MHz · 0.025 W/kg · all-night (experimental night; 6-min average also reported)

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

In a double-blind, randomized, sham-controlled crossover study, emotional and procedural memory were not affected by all-night 2.45 GHz Wi-Fi exposure. Overnight improvement in the declarative memory task was significantly better in the Wi-Fi condition, but post-learning sleep-specific/physiological parameters were not affected; authors note the inconsistency and that the behavioral effect could be a random finding.

Outcomes measured

Sleep-dependent memory consolidation (declarative, emotional, procedural)
Learning-associated brain activity parameters (power spectra for slow oscillations and in the spindle frequency range)
Post-learning sleep-specific parameters

Limitations

Physiological sleep parameters did not support the observed behavioral effect on declarative memory
Authors state the significant declarative-memory effect could be a random finding
Small sample size (n=30)
Population limited to young males

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "randomized_trial",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": "wi-fi",
    "frequency_mhz": 2450,
    "sar_wkg": 0.025,
    "duration": "all-night (experimental night; 6-min average also reported)"
  },
  "population": "Thirty young males (mean ± SD: 24.1 ± 2.9 years)",
  "sample_size": 30,
  "outcomes": [
    "Sleep-dependent memory consolidation (declarative, emotional, procedural)",
    "Learning-associated brain activity parameters (power spectra for slow oscillations and in the spindle frequency range)",
    "Post-learning sleep-specific parameters"
  ],
  "main_findings": "In a double-blind, randomized, sham-controlled crossover study, emotional and procedural memory were not affected by all-night 2.45 GHz Wi-Fi exposure. Overnight improvement in the declarative memory task was significantly better in the Wi-Fi condition, but post-learning sleep-specific/physiological parameters were not affected; authors note the inconsistency and that the behavioral effect could be a random finding.",
  "effect_direction": "mixed",
  "limitations": [
    "Physiological sleep parameters did not support the observed behavioral effect on declarative memory",
    "Authors state the significant declarative-memory effect could be a random finding",
    "Small sample size (n=30)",
    "Population limited to young males"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "2.45 GHz",
    "Wi-Fi",
    "RF-EMF",
    "sleep",
    "memory consolidation",
    "declarative memory",
    "procedural memory",
    "emotional memory",
    "double-blind",
    "randomized",
    "sham-controlled",
    "crossover",
    "psSAR10g"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "school-wi-fi",
      "weight": 0.6,
      "reason": "Study explicitly examines Wi-Fi (2.45 GHz) RF-EMF exposure effects."
    }
  ]
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1111/jsr.13224
PubMed: 33166026

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