More children and young people are seeking medical care for memory problems in both Sweden and Norway. The Swedish Radiation Protection Foundation believes the increase may be linked to radiation exposure, which has also increased during the same period.
In Norway, there has been an increase in recent years in the number of people seeking medical care for memory problems, not only among adults but also among children. Between 2019 and 2024, for example, the number of doctor visits related to memory problems more than doubled, from 41,722 doctor visits to 98,910 doctor visits in 2024. Among children aged 5-14, visits had nearly tripled.
— I have never seen such a dramatic increase in these figures before, says Richard Aubrey White, researcher and statistician at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI), to Norwegian state broadcaster NRK.
In Sweden too, the number of doctor visits regarding memory problems has increased, both among children and adults. Memory problems, which can be classified as mild cognitive impairment, is a diagnosis found under diagnostic code R41. In 2011, 577 children were registered with diagnosis R41 as the primary diagnosis; by 2024, the number had increased to 5,975.
Microwave radiation
The Swedish Radiation Protection Foundation believes the increase may be due to increased exposure to microwave radiation among people, pointing out that repeated research has shown, for example, that radiation has a harmful effect on memory.
“Repeated scientific studies have also shown that people exposed to elevated levels of this radiation have an increased occurrence of various symptoms, called microwave syndrome, where impaired memory is one of the most common symptoms“, writes the Swedish Radiation Protection Foundation.
Cell towers associated with worse memory
Even in case studies examining the health effects of 5G, impaired memory tends to be one of the most commonly reported effects. Reports of impaired memory, concentration difficulties, and headaches are also common when living near cell towers.
The Swedish Radiation Protection Foundation notes that radiation has increased dramatically during the same period as the increase in doctor visits for memory problems has occurred. At the same time, mobile phones have begun to be used more extensively by both children and adults during the same period.
“The increased memory problems, both among children and adults, are thus an expected effect resulting from the increase in people’s exposure to microwave radiation”.