An experiment carried out by Professor Olle Johansson and colleagues at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden in 2001 and published in the Journal of Cutaneous Pathology (2001; 28:513–519) showed, much to the surprise of the researchers, that two to four hour exposure to TV or PC screens did have significant effect on the histamine-containing mast cells in the dermis (which lies beneath the skin) of healthy volunteer subjects.

In five out of the 13 healthy volunteers who took part in the trial the number of mast cells (the cells implicated in any allergic reaction) not only increased in number after the exposure but migrated to the upper, and normally 'empty zone', of the dermis.

Twenty four hours after exposure the cells of all volunteers had returned to normal.

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First Published in 2001

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