Effects of 50 Hz magnetic fields on circadian rhythm control in mice.
Lundberg L, Sienkiewicz Z, Anthony DC, Broom KA. · 2019
View Original AbstractPower-frequency magnetic fields at 580 microtesla showed minimal impact on circadian rhythms in mice, suggesting typical household EMF levels are unlikely to disrupt sleep cycles.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed mice to magnetic fields from power lines during sleep to test effects on their internal body clocks. The magnetic fields caused only minor changes in movement, while light exposure significantly disrupted sleep hormones. Power line magnetic fields don't appear to disrupt circadian rhythms.
Why This Matters
This study addresses an important question about whether the magnetic fields from our electrical infrastructure can disrupt our biological clocks. The 580 microtesla exposure level is quite high - roughly equivalent to what you'd experience standing directly under high-voltage transmission lines, and about 100 times higher than typical household levels. The fact that researchers found minimal circadian effects even at these elevated levels provides some reassurance about everyday EMF exposures from power lines and household wiring. However, this was a single 30-minute exposure in young, healthy mice. What this means for you is that power-frequency magnetic fields at typical environmental levels are unlikely to acutely disrupt your sleep-wake cycle, though longer-term exposures and cumulative effects remain less well studied.
Exposure Details
- Magnetic Field
- 0.58 mG
- Source/Device
- 50-Hz
- Exposure Duration
- 30 min starting at zeitgeber time 14 (ZT14, 2 h into the dark period of the day)
Exposure Context
This study used 0.58 mG for magnetic fields:
- 29Kx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.2 mG
- 5.8Kx above the BioInitiative Report recommendation of 1 mG
Building Biology guidelines are practitioner-based limits from real-world assessments. BioInitiative Report recommendations are based on peer-reviewed science. Check Your Exposure to compare your own measurements.
Where This Falls on the Concern Scale
Study Details
The aim of this study is to observe Effects of 50 Hz magnetic fields on circadian rhythm control in mice.
To study this possibility, 8-12-week-old male C57BL/6J mice were exposed for 30 min starting at zeit...
Our experiments revealed an acute adrenal response to blue light, in terms of increased adrenal per1...
In conclusion, these results suggest that 50 Hz magnetic fields do not significantly affect the acute light response to a degree that can be detected in the adrenal response
Show BibTeX
@article{l_2019_effects_of_50_hz_678,
author = {Lundberg L and Sienkiewicz Z and Anthony DC and Broom KA.},
title = {Effects of 50 Hz magnetic fields on circadian rhythm control in mice.},
year = {2019},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30945762/},
}