Author/Authors :
Zarei، S نويسنده Speech and Language Pathology Department, School of Rehabilitation, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran , , Mortazavi، S M J نويسنده President of the Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Protection Research Center (INIRPRC); Professor of Medical Physics in the School of Medicine of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran , , Mehdizadeh، A R نويسنده Department of Medical Physics and Engineering, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Science, Shiraz, Iran , , Jalalipour، M نويسنده Speech and Language Pathology Department, School of Rehabilitation, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran , , Borzou، S نويسنده Speech and Language Pathology Department, School of Rehabilitation, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran , , Taeb، S نويسنده Ph.D candidate at the Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Protection Research Center (INIRPRC), Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran , , Haghani، M نويسنده Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Protection Research Center (INIRPRC), Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran , , Mortazavi، S A R نويسنده Medical Student at Student Research Committee, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran , , Shojaei-fard ، M B نويسنده Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Protection Research Center (INIRPRC), Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran , , Nematollahi، S نويسنده Master Student at the Biostatistics Department, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran , , Alighanbari، N نويسنده Occupational Health Department, School of Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran , , Jarideh، S نويسنده Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Protection Research Center (INIRPRC), Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran ,
Abstract :
Background: Nowadays, mothers are continuously exposed to different sources of
electromagnetic felds before and even during pregnancy. It has recently been shown
that exposure to mobile phone radiation during pregnancy may lead to adverse effects on the brain development in offspring and cause hyperactivity. Researchers have
shown that behavioral problems in laboratory animals which have a similar appearance
to ADHD are caused by intrauterine exposure to mobile phones.
Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the maternal
exposure to different sources of electromagnetic felds affect on the rate and severity
of speech problems in their offspring.
Methods: In this study, mothers of 35 healthy 3-5 year old children (control group)
and 77 children and diagnosed with speech problems who had been referred to a speech
treatment center in Shiraz, Iran were interviewed. These mothers were asked whether
they had exposure to different sources of electromagnetic felds such as mobile phones,
mobile base stations, Wi-Fi, cordless phones, laptops and power lines.
Results: We found a signifcant association between either the call time (P=0.002)
or history of mobile phone use (months used) and speech problems in the offspring
(P=0.003). However, other exposures had no effect on the occurrence of speech problems. To the best of our knowledge, this is the frst study to investigate a possible association between maternal exposure to electromagnetic feld and speech problems in
the offspring. Although a major limitation in our study is the relatively small sample
size, this study indicates that the maternal exposure to common sources of electromagnetic felds such as mobile phones can affect the occurrence of speech problems in the
offspring.
