The Impact of Gadget Use During Pregnancy: A Systematic Literature Review (SLR)
Main Article Content
Abstract
Background: The widespread use of mobile phones and electronic media devices (EMDs) has raised public health concerns, particularly regarding their potential effects during pregnancy. Pregnant women may be at increased risk of adverse maternal and fetal outcomes due to exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMFs) and prolonged screen time. Despite the growing body of research, comprehensive syntheses specifically addressing gadget use during pregnancy remain limited.
Purpose: This systematic review synthesizes evidence on the effects of gadget use during pregnancy on maternal health and fetal development.
Methods: This study employed a systematic literature review approach guided by the PRISMA framework. Relevant literature was retrieved from the Scopus and Google Scholar databases using specific keywords related to gadget use and pregnancy. The inclusion criteria comprised peer-reviewed articles published between 2015 and 2025, written in either English or Indonesian, that involved pregnant women and examined physical, mental, or developmental outcomes. The quality of the 19 selected studies was evaluated using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT), and data extraction covered study design, outcomes, and key implications.
Results: Nineteen studies met the inclusion and quality criteria, comprising mostly quantitative non-randomized designs. The findings show that excessive gadget use during pregnancy—particularly prolonged screen exposure and mobile phone use—is associated with increased maternal anxiety, depression, hypertensive disorders, lower birth weight, shortened gestational periods, and developmental issues in children, including speech delays and poor motor skills. However, a few studies reported no significant cognitive impact on offspring.
Conclusion: Prolonged electronic device use during pregnancy has been associated with adverse maternal and fetal health outcomes. Given the potential risks, healthcare providers should recommend limiting screen exposure and developing clearer guidelines for safe gadget use during pregnancy. Further research is needed to define exposure thresholds and explore long-term impacts on child health.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Articles and files in this journal are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
Ashrafinia, F., Moeindarbari, S., Razmjouei, P., Ghazanfarpour, M., Najafi, M. N., Ghalibaf, A. A. M., & Abdi, F. (2021). Can Prenatal and Postnatal Cell Phone Exposure Increase Adverse Maternal, Infant and Child Outcomes? Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetricia, 43(11), 870–877. https://doi.org/10.1055/s-0041-1736173
Bektas, H., Bektas, M. S., & Dasdag, S. (2018). Effects of mobile phone exposure on biochemical parameters of cord blood: A preliminary study. Electromagnetic Biology and Medicine, 37(4), 184–191. https://doi.org/10.1080/15368378.2018.1499033
Bektas, H., Bektas, M. S., & Dasdag, S. (2022). Effect of mobile phone usage duration during pregnancy on the general motor movements of infants. Biotechnology and Biotechnological Equipment, 36(1), 56–66. https://doi.org/10.1080/13102818.2022.2046505
Bektas, H., Dasdag, S., & Bektas, M. S. (2020). Comparison of effects of 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi and mobile phone exposure on human placenta and cord blood. Biotechnology and Biotechnological Equipment, 34(1), 154–162. https://doi.org/10.1080/13102818.2020.1725639
Bektas, H., Dasdag, S., & Bektas, M. S. (2021). Evaluation of 900 and 1800 Mhz Radiofrequency Radiation Emitted from Mobile Phones on Pregnant Women. In Journal of International Dental and Medical Research (Vol. 14, Issue 4, pp. 1675–1683). jidmr.com. http://www.jidmr.com/journal/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/56-M21_1615_Suleyman_Dasdag_Turkey.pdf
Biaggi, A., Conroy, S., Pawlby, S., & Pariante, C. M. (2016). Identifying the women at risk of antenatal anxiety and depression: A systematic review. Journal of Affective Disorders, 191, 62–77. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2015.11.014
Birks, L., Guxens, M., Papadopoulou, E., Alexander, J., Ballester, F., Estarlich, M., Gallastegi, M., Ha, M., Haugen, M., Huss, A., Kheifets, L., Lim, H., Olsen, J., Santa-Marina, L., Sudan, M., Vermeulen, R., Vrijkotte, T., Cardis, E., & Vrijheid, M. (2017). Maternal cell phone use during pregnancy and child behavioral problems in five birth cohorts. Environment International, 104, 122–131. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2017.03.024
Boileau, N., Margueritte, F., Gauthier, T., Boukeffa, N., Preux, P. M., Labrunie, A., & Aubard, Y. (2020). Mobile phone use during pregnancy: Which association with fetal growth? Journal of Gynecology Obstetrics and Human Reproduction, 49(8). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jogoh.2020.101852
Chen, Y., Lyu, J., Xia, Y., Zhu, J., Tong, S., Ying, Y., Qu, J., & Li, S. (2020). Effect of maternal sleep, physical activity and screen time during pregnancy on the risk of childhood respiratory allergies: A sex-specific study. Respiratory Research, 21(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12931-020-01497-8
Choi, K. H., Ha, M., Ha, E. H., Park, H., Kim, Y., Hong, Y. C., Lee, A. K., Hwa Kwon, J., Choi, H. Do, Kim, N., Kim, S., & Park, C. (2017). Neurodevelopment for the first three years following prenatal mobile phone use, radio frequency radiation and lead exposure. In Environmental Research (Vol. 156, pp. 810–817). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2017.04.029
Çöl, N., Kömürcü-Karuserci, Ö., & Demirel, C. (2021). The possible effects of maternal electronic media device usage during pregnancy on children’s sleep patterns. In Turkish Archives of Pediatrics (Vol. 56, Issue 3, pp. 254–260). ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. https://doi.org/10.5152/TurkArchPediatr.2020.20138
Emre, M., Boga, A., Cetiner, S., Tunc, E., & Demirhan, O. (2021). The Effects of Exposure to 900 MHz Radiofrequency Radiation and Nicotine on Apoptotic Ratio of Human Fetal Cells. South East European Journal of Immunology, 4(1), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.3889/seejim.2021.3249
Farhan, A., Abas, W. M., & Nsaif, W. S. (2016). Influence of the Mobile Phone Signas Waves on the Masculinity and Sperm and Rates of Pregnancy and Procreation. In International Journal of Engineering and Advanced Technology Studies (Vol. 4, Issue 4, pp. 1–9). https://sport.uodiyala.edu.iq/uod/uploads/2019/???? ??????????/???? ???/????? ?????? ?????? ??????? ??? ???? ????????.pdf
GSMA. (2024). The Mobile Gender Gap Report 2024. GSMA. https://www.gsma.com/r/gender-gap-2024/
Kömürcü Karuserci, Ö., Çöl, N., & Demirel, C. (2019). May electromagnetic field exposure during pregnancy have a negative effect on anthropometric measurements of the newborn? Cukurova Medical Journal, 44, 290–295. https://doi.org/10.17826/cumj.568315
Lu, X., Oda, M., Ohba, T., Mitsubuchi, H., Masuda, S., & Katoh, T. (2017). Association of excessive mobile phone use during pregnancy with birth weight: An adjunct study in Kumamoto of Japan Environment and Children’s Study. Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, 22(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12199-017-0656-1
Papadopoulou, E., Haugen, M., Schjølberg, S., Magnus, P., Brunborg, G., Vrijheid, M., & Alexander, J. (2017). Maternal cell phone use in early pregnancy and child’s language, communication and motor skills at 3 and 5 years: The Norwegian mother and child cohort study (MoBa). BMC Public Health, 17(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-017-4672-2
Plakas, S., Anagnostou, E., Plakas, A. C., & Piagkou, M. (2022). High risk factors for craniosynostosis during pregnancy: A case-control study. In European Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Reproductive Biology: X (Vol. 14). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eurox.2022.100147
Robinson, R., Lahti-Pulkkinen, M., Heinonen, K., Reynolds, R. M., & Räikkönen, K. (2019). Fetal programming of neuropsychiatric disorders by maternal pregnancy depression: a systematic mini review. Pediatric Research, 85(2), 134–145. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-018-0173-y
Saadia, Z. (2018). Impact of maternal obesity and mobile phone use on fetal cardiotocography pattern. In Open Access Macedonian Journal of Medical Sciences (Vol. 6, Issue 10). cabidigitallibrary.org. https://doi.org/10.3889/oamjms.2018.405
Sreetharan, S., Thome, C., Tharmalingam, S., Jones, D. E., Kulesza, A. V., Khaper, N., Lees, S. J., Wilson, J. Y., Boreham, D. R., & Tai, T. C. (2017). Ionizing Radiation Exposure during Pregnancy: Effects on Postnatal Development and Life. Radiation Research, 187(6), 647–658. https://doi.org/10.1667/RR14657.1
Sudan, M., Birks, L. E., Aurrekoetxea, J. J., Ferrero, A., Gallastegi, M., Guxens, M., Ha, M., Lim, H., Olsen, J., González-Safont, L., Vrijheid, M., & Kheifets, L. (2018). Maternal cell phone use during pregnancy and child cognition at age 5?years in 3 birth cohorts. Environment International, 120(March), 155–162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2018.07.043
Tang, S., Liu, Y., Gu, Y., Yang, Q., & Wang, Q. (2024). Effects of electronic screen exposure time on hypertensive disorders in pregnancy: a retrospective cohort study. BMC Public Health, 24(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-18793-3
Tristanti, I., Nisak, A. Z., Khoirunnisa’, F. N., Wigati, A., & Kusumastuti, D. A. (2020). The Effectiveness of Using Gadgets on Pregnant Women. 27(ICoSHEET 2019), 288–291. https://doi.org/10.2991/ahsr.k.200723.072
Tsarna, E., Reedijk, M., Birks, L. E., Guxens, M., Ballester, F., Ha, M., Jiménez-Zabala, A., Kheifets, L., Lertxundi, A., Lim, H. R., Olsen, J., González Safont, L., Sudan, M., Cardis, E., Vrijheid, M., Vrijkotte, T., Huss, A., & Vermeulen, R. (2019). Associations of Maternal Cell-Phone Use during Pregnancy with Pregnancy Duration and Fetal Growth in 4 Birth Cohorts. American Journal of Epidemiology, 188(7), 1270–1280. https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwz092
Turner, A. (2025). Number of Mobile Phone & Smartphone Users. Bankmycell.Com. https://www.bankmycell.com/blog/how-many-phones-are-in-the-world
Verreet, T., Verslegers, M., Quintens, R., Baatout, S., & Benotmane, M. A. (2016). Current evidence for developmental, structural, and functional brain defects following prenatal radiation exposure. Neural Plasticity, 2016. https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/1243527
Verschaeve, L. (2017). Misleading Scientific Papers on Health Effects from Wireless Communication Devices. Microwave Effects on DNA and Proteins, 159–233. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-50289-2_5
Yang, Q., Wang, Q., Zhang, H., Zheng, D., & Tang, S. (2024). Association of electronic screen exposure with depression among women in early pregnancy: a cross-sectional study. Reproductive Health , 21(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12978-024-01869-z
Zarei, S., Vahab, M., Oryadi-Zanjani, M. M., Alighanbari, N., & Mortazavi, S. M. J. (2019). Mother’s exposure to electromagnetic fields before and during pregnancy is associated with risk of speech problems in offspring. Journal of Biomedical Physics and Engineering, 9(1), 61–68. https://doi.org/10.31661/jbpe.v0i0.676
Zhan, Y., Bai, J., Wei, J., Liu, L., & Wei, Q. (2024). The Relationship Between Congenital Heart Disease in Newborns and Maternal Prenatal Folic Acid Supplementation, and Analysis of Other High-Risk Factors. In Alternative therapies in health and medicine. alternative-therapies.com. http://www.alternative-therapies.com/oa/pdf/10494.pdf