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The wireless radiation from power lines and household wiring increased children’s risk of central nervous system tumors, according to a peer-reviewed study published in Environmental Research.
Prolonged tablet use also increased kids’ risk, especially when tablets were connected to the internet.
Central nervous system tumors, such as gliomas, are the “second most common childhood cancer,” the authors wrote in their report.
The authors compared the wireless radiation exposure levels of 200 children diagnosed with central nervous system tumors to the exposure levels of nearly 800 kids undiagnosed with central nervous system tumors. All of the children lived in Mexico City and were under age 16.
Kids are especially at risk because their central nervous systems are still developing, the authors wrote. “They also have higher water content and differing ion concentrations … making their brain tissue more conductive compared to that of adults.”
Wireless radiation may penetrate deeper into a child’s brain than an adult’s, since a child’s head is smaller, they added.
Tablet use in schools soars after COVID
The researchers noted that their findings reflected people’s experiences right before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. They collected data from 2017-2022.
The authors measured extremely low-frequency magnetic fields in the child’s bedroom for 24 hours to determine the child’s level of routine exposure. Extremely low frequency radiation is produced by power lines, electrical wiring and electrical equipment, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The authors also measured the child’s exposure to the radiofrequency (RF) radiation from tablets and cellphones.
They didn’t find a statistically significant link between cellphone use and increased tumor risk, except among kids 5 and younger who reportedly used a cellphone for over four years.
That could be because the researchers relied on interviews with parents to determine how much time the child spent on a cellphone or tablet, which could have skewed the results, said Lennart Hardell, M.D., Ph.D., an oncologist and epidemiologist with the Environment and Cancer Research Foundation.
“Parents may underestimate the true use not to feel guilty to have caused the child’s brain tumor,” Hardell said. Hardell, one of the first researchers to publish reports on the toxicity of Agent Orange, has authored more than 350 papers, nearly 60 of which address RF radiation.
The researchers did, however, find a statistically significant link between tablet use and increased tumor risk — even when kids used tablets that were not connected to the internet and only generated electricity.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, tablets became a staple for many students. By September 2021, 96% of U.S. public schools provided digital devices, such as tablets, to kids, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
Last year, Common Sense reported that 40% of kids had a tablet by age 2.
Studies link cellphone radiation to increased brain cancer risk
Hardell noted that the authors of the study failed to cite many prior studies that showed a link between cellphone radiation and central nervous system tumors.
For instance, in 2011, Hardell and his colleagues published one of the world’s first and largest studies showing a link between cellphone use and brain cancer, he said.
Since then, more studies have shown an increased risk of central nervous system tumors from cellphone radiation exposure.
A 2025 systematic review commissioned by the World Health Organization (WHO) concluded there is “high certainty” evidence that the wireless radiation emitted by cellphones and other wireless devices was linked to an increased risk of malignant gliomas in the brain and malignant schwannomas, or nerve tumors, in the heart in studies on animals.
The WHO’s review noted that both tumor types had previously been found in studies on humans.
In 2018, the National Toxicology Program’s (NTP) 10-year, $30 million study found evidence of several kinds of cancer, including gliomas, in rats.
To date, the National Institutes of Health has not revealed nearly 2,500 pages of records related to the NTP’s decision to shut down its research on how wireless radiation affects human health, according to an investigation by The Defender.
Exposure to extremely low frequency magnetic fields has repeatedly been linked to an increased risk of childhood leukemia. A 2019 review reported that government-funded studies found cancer risks, while industry-funded studies claimed not to find increased cancer risks.
In addition to cancer, studies have linked prenatal exposure to extremely low frequency magnetic fields with increased miscarriage risk, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), obesity and asthma in kids.
The Defender reached out to the study’s corresponding authors but did not receive a response by the deadline.
