6,486 Studies Reviewed. 85.2% of Original Studies Found Biological Effects. The Evidence is Clear.

Acute exposure to a 60 Hz magnetic field affects rats' water-maze performance

Bioeffects Seen

Authors not listed · 1998

Share:

Rats exposed to a 60 Hz magnetic field showed slower swim speed and spent less time in the target quadrant during a probe trial.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Rats were trained in six sessions to locate a submerged platform in a water maze and exposed to a 1 mT, 60 Hz magnetic field for one hour before each session. There was no significant difference in learning to locate the platform between exposed and control rats. Exposed rats had significantly slower swim speed and spent less time in the target quadrant during a probe trial, with different swim patterns.

Why This Matters

The study used sham-exposed controls with coils activated in anti-parallel direction to cancel fields and also included a non-exposed control group. The authors concluded that magnetic field exposure causes a deficit in spatial reference memory and that exposed rats probably used a different behavioral strategy.

Exposure Information

A logarithmic frequency spectrum from 10 Hz to 100 GHz showing where this study's 60 Hz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 60 HzCell phones~1 GHzWiFi2.4 GHz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study.

Cite This Study
Unknown (1998). Acute exposure to a 60 Hz magnetic field affects rats' water-maze performance.
Show BibTeX
@article{acute_exposure_to_a_60_hz_magnetic_field_affects_rats_water_maze_performance_ce1572,
  author = {Unknown},
  title = {Acute exposure to a 60 Hz magnetic field affects rats' water-maze performance},
  year = {1998},
  doi = {10.1002/(SICI)1521-186X(1998)19:2<117::AID-BEM10>3.0.CO;2-N},
  
}

Quick Questions About This Study

Rats were exposed to a 1 mT, 60 Hz magnetic field for one hour before each of six training sessions.
There was no significant difference between exposed and control rats in learning to locate the platform.
Exposed rats had significantly slower swim speed and spent less time in the target quadrant during the probe trial, with different swim patterns.
The results indicate that magnetic field exposure causes a deficit in spatial reference memory in rats.
The study used sham-exposed controls with coils in anti-parallel configuration and a non-exposed control group.