Mother's Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields before and during Pregnancy is Associated with Risk of Speech Problems in Offspring

2019 · Mixed · Low evidence

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MixedLow evidencePaper 1824

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2019

Study typecase_control

Reported directionMixed

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Mother's Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields before and during Pregnancy is Associated with Risk of Speech Problems in Offspring Zarei S, Vahab M, Oryadi-Zanjani MM, Alighanbari N, Mortazavi SM. Mother's Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields before and during Pregnancy is Associated with Risk of Speech Problems in Offspring. J Biomed Phys Eng. 2019 Feb 1;9(1):61-68. Abstract BACKGROUND: Rapid advances in technology, especially in the field of telecommunication, have led to extraordinary levels of mothers' exposures to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) prior to or during pregnancy. OBJECTIVE: The main goal of this study was to answer this question whether exposure of women to common sources of RF-EMFs either prior to or during pregnancy is related to speech problems in the offspring. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, mothers of 110 three-to-seven-year-old children with speech problems and 75 healthy children (control group) were interviewed. These mothers were asked whether they had exposure to different sources of EMFs such as mobile phones, mobile base stations, Wi-Fi, cordless phones, laptops and power lines. Chi square test was used to analyze the differences observed between the control and exposed groups. RESULTS: Statistically significant associations were found between the use of cordless phone and offspring speech problems for both before pregnancy and during pregnancy maternal exposures (P=0.005 and P=0.014, respectively). However, due to high rate of mobile phone use in both groups, this study failed to show any link between mobile phone use and speech problems in offspring. Furthermore, significant associations were observed between living in the vicinity of power lines and speech problems again for both before pregnancy and during pregnancy maternal exposures (P=0.003 and P=0.002, respectively). However, exposure to other sources of non-ionizing radiation was not linked to speech problems. Moreover, exposure to ionizing radiation (e.g. radiography before and during pregnancy) was not associated with the occurrence of speech problems. CONCLUSION: Although this study has some limitations, it leads us to this conclusion that higher-than-ever levels of maternal exposure to electromagnetic fields could be linked to offspring speech problems. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

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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 typecase_control

Effect directionmixed

PopulationMothers of 3–7-year-old children with speech problems and mothers of healthy controls

Sample size185

ExposureRF · before pregnancy and during pregnancy

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

In interviews of mothers of 110 children with speech problems and 75 controls, statistically significant associations were reported between maternal cordless phone use and offspring speech problems both before pregnancy (P=0.005) and during pregnancy (P=0.014). Significant associations were also reported for living in the vicinity of power lines both before pregnancy (P=0.003) and during pregnancy (P=0.002). The study did not find an association with mobile phone use (noted high use in both groups), and other non-ionizing sources and ionizing radiation (radiography) were not associated with speech problems.

Outcomes measured

Speech problems in offspring

Limitations

Exposure assessment based on maternal interview/self-report
Specific RF frequencies, exposure levels, and dosimetry not reported
High prevalence of mobile phone use in both groups limited ability to detect an association
Other limitations not specified in abstract

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "case_control",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": "multiple (cordless phone, mobile phone, mobile base stations, Wi‑Fi, laptops; also power lines)",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "before pregnancy and during pregnancy"
  },
  "population": "Mothers of 3–7-year-old children with speech problems and mothers of healthy controls",
  "sample_size": 185,
  "outcomes": [
    "Speech problems in offspring"
  ],
  "main_findings": "In interviews of mothers of 110 children with speech problems and 75 controls, statistically significant associations were reported between maternal cordless phone use and offspring speech problems both before pregnancy (P=0.005) and during pregnancy (P=0.014). Significant associations were also reported for living in the vicinity of power lines both before pregnancy (P=0.003) and during pregnancy (P=0.002). The study did not find an association with mobile phone use (noted high use in both groups), and other non-ionizing sources and ionizing radiation (radiography) were not associated with speech problems.",
  "effect_direction": "mixed",
  "limitations": [
    "Exposure assessment based on maternal interview/self-report",
    "Specific RF frequencies, exposure levels, and dosimetry not reported",
    "High prevalence of mobile phone use in both groups limited ability to detect an association",
    "Other limitations not specified in abstract"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "radiofrequency electromagnetic fields",
    "RF-EMF",
    "pregnancy",
    "maternal exposure",
    "cordless phone",
    "Wi-Fi",
    "mobile phone",
    "base stations",
    "power lines",
    "speech problems",
    "offspring",
    "case-control"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "prenatal-exposure",
      "weight": 0.9,
      "reason": "Assesses maternal EMF exposure before/during pregnancy and child outcomes."
    },
    {
      "slug": "mobile-phones",
      "weight": 0.55,
      "reason": "Mobile phone use assessed as an exposure source (no association reported)."
    },
    {
      "slug": "school-wi-fi",
      "weight": 0.25,
      "reason": "Wi‑Fi listed among exposure sources, though not linked in results."
    },
    {
      "slug": "occupational-exposure",
      "weight": 0,
      "reason": null
    }
  ]
}

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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: Not supplied
PubMed: Not supplied

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