Every minute spent using a cell phone each week has been linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, says a new study by Chinese researchers.
This increase in risk was particularly significant among smokers and diabetics.
“This is a subject that will continue to be talked about in the coming years because people will be interested in it,” commented Doctor François Simard, of the Montreal Heart Institute. We don’t have a lot of data, but I think that there will be more and more formal associations that will be found between cell phone use and our cardiovascular risk.
The study’s authors dissected data provided by some 450,000 adults who recorded the time spent using a cell phone each week between 2006 and 2010.
After more than a decade of follow-up, researchers conclude that those who use their mobile phones regularly are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease.
“Our study demonstrated that cell phone use was significantly associated with cardiovascular disease risk even after adjusting for cardiovascular risk factors including hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, obesity, and physical inactivity, indicating that this association is independent of these cardiovascular risk factors,” we can read in the Canadian Journal of Cardiology.
No notable differences were found between men and women.
The mechanisms that explain this association remain to be clarified. However, it is believed that cell phone use could cause poorer quality sleep or even psychological stress, which could then disrupt the circadian rhythm or be a source of inflammation.
“We know that less optimal sleep hygiene, anxiety and stress are clear risk factors for coronary heart disease,” said Dr. Simard. We sometimes underestimate them a little in our North American lifestyle, because we think we have no choice, but it’s one of the risk factors.”
We can also assume that every minute spent using a mobile phone is a minute that is not spent on activities good for cardiovascular health, such as physical exercise or meditation.
“There are only 24 hours in a day, and the time we devote to one activity is not devoted to another,” recalled Dr. Simard.
It is also not impossible that chronic exposure to cell phone radiation is a source of oxidative stress and inflammation, the study authors warn.
They also specify that the association was observed with the frequency of cell phone use, rather than with the total duration of use.
Dr. Simard finally points out that the authors of the study only counted the number of minutes spent on telephone calls each week, even though we know very well that this is not at all the only use that people make. of their device.
“Honestly, I’m still a little hungry,” he said. There are so many other things we want to know! I think we’re going to hear about it over the next few years because cell phone use is certainly not destined to disappear…”
