Can you hear my sperm now?

Cell phone use may be hazardous to the health of sperm, according to a study of 221 Hungarian men. (1) Researchers found that men who carried their phones all day in a hip pocket or a holster, even in standby mode, had a 30% reduction in sperm count; sperm quality also was reduced among heavy users of the ubiquitous device. Although the findings have caught the attention of fertility experts and other scientists, they are hardly conclusive. The study has been criticized for not controlling for factors such as men's stress levels and smoking habits that could influence sperm production; furthermore, as some scientists have pointed out, male fertility has been declining for decades. Most research to date has concluded that exposure to radio-frequency waves from cell phones poses no health threat, but the World Health Organization and other scientific bodies stress the importance of further investigation.

(1.) CNN, Sperm count, cell phone link dismissed,June 28, 2004,<http:// www.cnn.com/2004/HEALTH/06/28/ mobiles.sperm.reut>, accessed July 2, 2004.