Waves to fight Alzheimer's?

A new and very unexpected avenue of research has been opened by an American study suggesting that electromagnetic waves – such as those from mobile phones – have a beneficial effect against Alzheimer's disease.
Obtained on mice, these results are very preliminary and require confirmation. Gary Arendash, a researcher at the University of South Florida and an Alzheimer's specialist, and his colleagues conducted these investigations. Previous studies had suggested that exposure to electromagnetic waves increased the risk of suffering from Alzheimer's. Imagine their surprise!

Placed in cages equidistant from a transmitting antenna, these mice were exposed to high-frequency waves for one hour each day for several months, in order to study the long-term effects. And there, a triple surprise: the genetically modified (GM) mice exposed from a young age to the waves did not suffer from the memory disorders normally observed in these "Alzheimer's" mice. The aging GM mice, which already had memory problems, saw their abilities improve. Finally, in normal mice, memory (tested in mazes) was "boosted" by these months of exposure to the waves, the researchers specify. Moreover, no abnormalities - tumors or otherwise - were observed in the organisms of these mice.

Sur la photo le dispositif expérimental: les cages autour de l’antenne émettrice d’ondes électromagnétiques. (© Photo courtesy of University of South Florida)
It would, of course, be tempting to extrapolate these results to humans. Arendash and his colleagues conclude that waves could be a way to treat Alzheimer's. However, caution is required: the mouse model used is not an exact replica of the human disease, and the mode of exposure to waves is not the same as with the telephone (targeted on the head and not the whole body). Furthermore, other studies highlight tissue heating under the effect of waves, which has led to limiting exposure levels.

Jusqu’à présent les études sur la téléphonie mobile et la santé n’ont pas démontré que l’exposition aux ondes électromagnétiques était dangereuse. Cependant des incertitudes demeurent. Les résultats d’Arendash, publiés dans le Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, ajoute une note inattendue au débat.