Answer to Question #3986 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

I use my mobile phone a lot, that is, during my office work and sometimes at home. I am seven weeks pregnant now. Will it be harmful to use my mobile phone during my pregnancy? If it is harmful, should I discontinue using it or use it moderately?

Thank you for your inquiry about the risk to your embryo by using a cellular phone during pregnancy. Sometimes it is not made clear to the public that there are different kinds of radiation. The electrical fields from a cellular phone are nothing like x ray. The energy is so low in the electrical waves of cellular phones that it does not represent a risk to the developing embryo. If you use the cellular phone conventionally by placing it to your ear, you further reduce the exposure to the embryo, which is already extremely low because of the distance of the phone from your ear to your uterus. There are no studies dealing with the risks of cellular phones on the outcome of pregnancy in humans, but numerous animal studies indicate that the exposures from the phones do not represent a risk for birth defects or miscarriage. Of course you must realize that every healthy pregnant woman begins her pregnancy with a 3% risk for birth defects and a 15% risk for miscarriage. Good luck with your pregnancy.

Robert Brent MD, PhD, DSc(Hon)