A case-control study was conducted in China to evaluate the effects of occupational exposure to electromagnetic fields on levels of plasma hormones and inflammatory pathway biomarkers in male workers of a power plant.
The results on serum lipids investigated in a subgroup of same study population were published by Wang et al (2015).
A blood sample was taken from each participant to analyze hormone and biomarker levels.
Remark EMF-Portal: The classification into 'low occupational EMF exposure' and 'high occupational EMF exposure' is not clear.
| Group | Description |
|---|---|
| Reference group 1 | low occupational exposure: no walkie-talkies use, daily exposure < 4 h, employment duration < 15 years |
| Group 2 | high occupational exposure: walkie-talkies use, daily exposure ≥ 4 h, employment duration ≥ 15 years |
| Reference group 3 | low occupational exposure, employment duration: < 23 years |
| Group 4 | low occupational exposure, employment duration: ≥ 23 years |
| Group 5 | high occupational exposure, employment duration: < 23 years |
| Group 6 | high occupational exposure, employment duration: ≥ 23 years |
| Reference group 7 | low occupational exposure, daily duration: ≤ 4 hours/day |
| Group 8 | low occupational exposure, daily duration: > 4 hours/day |
| Group 9 | high occupational exposure, daily duration: ≤ 4 hours/day |
| Group 10 | high occupational exposure, daily duration: > 4 hours/day |
| Reference group 11 | low occupational exposure and mobile phone use: ≤ 12 years |
| Group 12 | low occupational exposure and mobile phone use: > 12 years |
| Group 13 | high occupational exposure and mobile phone use: ≤ 12 years |
| Group 14 | high occupational exposure and mobile phone use: > 12 years |
| Reference group 15 | low occupational exposure and mobile phone fee: < 60 yuan/month |
| Group 16 | low occupational exposure and mobile phone fee: ≥ 60 yuan/month |
| Group 17 | high occupational exposure and mobile phone fee: < 60 yuan/month |
| Group 18 | high occupational exposure and mobile phone fee: ≥ 60 yuan/month |
| Reference group 19 | low occupational exposure and monthly electric fee: ≤ 150 yuan/month |
| Group 20 | low occupational exposure and monthly electric fee: > 150 yuan/month |
| Group 21 | high occupational exposure and monthly electric fee: ≤ 150 yuan/month |
| Group 22 | high occupational exposure and monthly electric fee: > 150 yuan/month |
| Type | Value |
|---|---|
| Total | 2,138 |
| Participants | 747 |
| Evaluable | 154 |
The average measured intensity of occupational exposure was 316.3±1212.3 V/m for electric field and 6.17±14.71 µT for magnetic fields in high exposure group, which far outstripped that in low exposure group (3.9±0.3 V/m and 60.6±16.9 nT, respectively).
Significantly lower levels of testosterone and NF-KB and a significantly reduced testosterone/estradiol ratio were observed in workers with higher occupational exposure (group 2) in comparison to the reference group 1. No significant associations were found for estradiol, melatonin, or for the inflammatory pathway biomarkers HSP70, HSP27, or TET1. High exposure groups with longer employment duration, longer mobile phone use, higher mobile phone fee or higher electric fee per month showed lower levels of testosterone and testosterone/estradiol ratio compared to the respective reference groups.
The authors concluded that chronic exposure to electromagnetic fields could decrease male plasma testosterone and testosterone/estradiol ratio.
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