Cellphone Addicts, Listen Up
Your device is a potential danger to your fertility, according to a review published online in the Journal of Andrology,
Researchers have looked at the impact of your mobile phone’s electromagnetic frequency (EMF) radiation on sperm, and the results—though not yet conclusive—present a compelling case that cell phones damage sperm quality,
Studies have shown men who use their phones a lot have decreased sperm concentration, slower sperm, and damaged sperm, compared to guys who don’t use cellphones. So you might want to give those apps a rest from now on.
Related: Your Weight Is Messing With Your Sperm, Study Says
Your Front Pocket Isn’t The Best Place To Keep Your Phone
It’s where you carry your phone that matters, research shows. South African researchers published a study that found men who carried mobile phones on their hip or in their front pants pocket had slower-swimming sperm, and less-concentrated sperm—both of which could cause fertility issues. The amount of sperm abnormalities increased among guys who spent more time tied to their phones.
In another study, Turkish researchers subjected human sperm in lab dishes to one hour of cellphone EMF radiation. The exposure caused sperm abnormalities, including sperm that had problems attaching to eggs.
“This should serve as a wake-up call to those men in their reproductive years who keep their phones in their pants pockets,” said Joel Moskowitz, Ph.D., director of the University of California, Berkeley’s Center for Family and Community Health.
Despite the bulk of evidence indicating your cellphone may be a pocket rocket pointed squarely at your baby makers, Moskowitz said studies are still deemed “inconclusive” because researchers aren’t yet sure why mobile phones impact sperm.
Related: Is Your Sperm Really Healthy? Use This Checklist To Find Out
Things Get Heated
One theory is that cell phones warm up when in use, and so may increase the temperature in the area around your crotch when stored in your pants pocket, the Italian study says. And your boys don’t respond well to heat: Your testicles hang outside of your body because your sperm needs to stay about 4 degrees cooler in order to survive.
Another hypothesis has to do with the electromagnetic frequency (EMF) emitted by your cell phone. Both cell phones and the cells in your body generate EMFs. Your phone’s high-frequency EMF radiation penetrates deep into your tissue, increasing the random molecular motion inside your body’s cells, studies say. And screwing up your body’s electromagnetic frequency at a cellular level could explain the abnormal sperm and decrease in fertility.
So, what should you do? Take steps to protect yourself and your future selves by never carrying your phone in your pants pocket. For every millimeter you put between yourself and your phone, studies have found you decrease your body’s cellphone radiation absorption by 15 percent. And be aware that smartphones may emit more radiation than simpler devices, according to recent research.
