Occupational electromagnetic field exposures associated with sleep quality: a cross-sectional study.

PloS one · 2014 · Harm · Low evidence

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HarmLow evidencePaper 4654

Study snapshot

PublicationPloS one · 2014

Study typecross_sectional

Reported directionHarm

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Exposure to electromagnetic field (EMF) emitted by mobile phone and other machineries concerns half the world's population and raises the problem of their impact on human health. The present study aims to explore the effects of electromagnetic field exposures on sleep quality and sleep duration among workers from electric power plant. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in an electric power plant of Zhejiang Province, China. A total of 854 participants were included in the final analysis. The detailed information of participants was obtained by trained investigators using a structured questionnaire, which including socio-demographic characteristics, lifestyle variables, sleep variables and electromagnetic exposures. Physical examination and venous blood collection were also carried out for every study subject. RESULTS: After grouping daily occupational electromagnetic exposure into three categories, subjects with long daily exposure time had a significantly higher risk of poor sleep quality in comparison to those with short daily exposure time. The adjusted odds ratios were 1.68 (95%CI: 1.18, 2.39) and 1.57 (95%CI: 1.10, 2.24) across tertiles. Additionally, among the subjects with long-term occupational exposure, the longer daily occupational exposure time apparently increased the risk of poor sleep quality (OR (95%CI): 2.12 (1.23∼3.66) in the second tertile; 1.83 (1.07∼3.15) in the third tertile). There was no significant association of long-term occupational exposure duration, monthly electric fee or years of mobile-phone use with sleep quality or sleep duration. CONCLUSIONS: The findings showed that daily occupational EMF exposure was positively associated with poor sleep quality. It implies EMF exposure may damage human sleep quality rather than sleep duration.

Machine Enhanced Logic

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 typecross_sectional

Effect directionharm

PopulationWorkers from an electric power plant in Zhejiang Province, China

Sample size854

Exposuredaily occupational exposure time (tertiles); long-term occupational exposure duration also assessed

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Workers with longer daily occupational EMF exposure time had higher odds of poor sleep quality compared with shorter daily exposure (adjusted ORs 1.68 and 1.57 across tertiles). Among those with long-term occupational exposure, longer daily exposure time was also associated with higher odds of poor sleep quality (ORs 2.12 and 1.83 across tertiles). No significant associations were found for long-term occupational exposure duration, monthly electric fee, or years of mobile-phone use with sleep quality or sleep duration.

Outcomes measured

Sleep quality
Sleep duration

Limitations

Cross-sectional design (cannot establish causality)
Exposure assessment appears questionnaire-based (structured questionnaire) rather than direct measurement (as described)
Specific EMF characteristics (frequency, intensity) not reported in abstract

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "cross_sectional",
  "exposure": {
    "band": null,
    "source": "occupational (electric power plant); also mentions mobile phone and other machinery",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "daily occupational exposure time (tertiles); long-term occupational exposure duration also assessed"
  },
  "population": "Workers from an electric power plant in Zhejiang Province, China",
  "sample_size": 854,
  "outcomes": [
    "Sleep quality",
    "Sleep duration"
  ],
  "main_findings": "Workers with longer daily occupational EMF exposure time had higher odds of poor sleep quality compared with shorter daily exposure (adjusted ORs 1.68 and 1.57 across tertiles). Among those with long-term occupational exposure, longer daily exposure time was also associated with higher odds of poor sleep quality (ORs 2.12 and 1.83 across tertiles). No significant associations were found for long-term occupational exposure duration, monthly electric fee, or years of mobile-phone use with sleep quality or sleep duration.",
  "effect_direction": "harm",
  "limitations": [
    "Cross-sectional design (cannot establish causality)",
    "Exposure assessment appears questionnaire-based (structured questionnaire) rather than direct measurement (as described)",
    "Specific EMF characteristics (frequency, intensity) not reported in abstract"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "electromagnetic field",
    "EMF",
    "occupational exposure",
    "electric power plant",
    "sleep quality",
    "sleep duration",
    "questionnaire",
    "China"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "occupational-exposure",
      "weight": 0.95,
      "reason": "Study population is electric power plant workers and evaluates occupational EMF exposure in relation to sleep outcomes."
    }
  ]
}

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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: 10.1371/journal.pone.0110825
PubMed: 25340654

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