Long cell phone calls cause blood pressure to rise

2023-05-07 10:56:00, Shëndeti CNA

Long cell phone calls cause blood pressure to rise

Illustrative photo

Talking on a cell phone for 30 minutes or more during a week is associated with a 12 percent higher risk of developing high blood pressure, compared to talking for less than 30 minutes. A study recently published in the "European Heart Journal-Digital Health" reached this conclusion.

"It's the number of minutes people spend talking on a cell phone that matters most for heart health. More minutes means greater risk," says the study's author, Professor Xianhui Qin of Southern Medical University in Guangzhou, China, who, however, emphasizes that more studies are needed to confirm this connection.

Almost three-quarters of the global population aged 10 and over have a mobile phone. Nearly 1.3 billion adults aged 30-79 worldwide suffer from high blood pressure (hypertension). Hypertension is a major risk factor for heart attack and stroke, and a leading cause of premature death globally.

Cell phones emit low levels of radio frequency energy, which has been linked to increased blood pressure after short-term exposure. The results of previous studies on cell phone use and blood pressure were inconsistent because they included phone calls, text messages, games, etc.

This study examined the relationship between making and receiving phone calls and hypertension. The study used data from the UK Biobank. A total of 212,046 adults aged 37-73 without hypertension were included.

Information on the use of a mobile phone to receive and answer calls was collected via a self-reported touchscreen questionnaire, including years of use, hours per week, and headset use.

Participants who used a mobile phone at least once a week to make or receive calls were defined as mobile phone users. The researchers analyzed the association between cell phone use and hypertension, after adjusting the data for age, sex, body mass index, race, deprivation, family history of hypertension, education, smoking status, blood pressure, blood lipids , inflammation, blood glucose, kidney function, and the use of medications to lower cholesterol or blood glucose levels.

The average age of participants was 54, 62 percent were women, and 88 percent were cell phone users. During an average follow-up of 12 years, 13,984 (7 percent) of the participants developed hypertension. Mobile phone users were 7 percent more at risk of hypertension compared to non-users.

Those who talked on their cell phones for 30 minutes or more per week were 12 percent more likely to have high blood pressure than participants who spent less than 30 minutes on cell phone calls. The results were similar for women and men.

Duke i parë gjetjet në mënyrë më të detajuar, krahasuar me pjesëmarrësit që shpenzonin më pak se 5 minuta në javë duke marrë apo pranuar telefonata në celular, koha javore e përdorimit prej 30-59 minutash, 1-3 orë, 4-6 orë dhe më shumë se 6 orë, ishte e shoqëruar me një rrezik të rritur të presionit të lartë të gjakut përkatësisht 8, 13, 16 dhe 25 për qind.

Në mesin e përdoruesve të telefonave celularë, vitet e përdorimit dhe përdorimi i një pajisjeje me kufje, nuk ishin të lidhura ndjeshëm me zhvillimin e hipertensionit. Po ashtu, studiuesit ekzaminuan lidhjen midis kohës së përdorimit (më pak se 30 minuta, kundrejt 30 minutave ose më shumë) dhe hipertensionit sipas faktit nëse pjesëmarrësit kishin një rrezik gjenetikisht të ulët, të ndërmjetëm apo të lartë të zhvillimit të hipertensionit.

Rreziku gjenetik u përcaktua duke përdorur të dhënat e Biobank në Britaninë e Madhe. Analiza tregoi se gjasat e zhvillimit të presionit të lartë të gjakut, ishin më të mëdha tek ata me një rrezik të lartë gjenetik dhe që kalonin të paktën 30 minuta në javë duke folur në celular.

They were 33 percent more likely to have hypertension, compared to those with a low genetic risk who spent less than 30 minutes a week on the phone. Professor Qin says: "Our findings suggest that talking on a mobile phone may not affect the risk of developing high blood pressure, as long as the weekly call time is kept below half an hour. More research is needed to replicate the results. But until then it seems prudent to have as few cell phone calls as possible to maintain heart health"./ Adapted from CNA.al