Cell activating capacity of 50 Hz magnetic fields to release reactive oxygen intermediates in human umbilical cord blood-derived monocytes and in Mono Mac 6 cells.

This study provides direct evidence that power frequency magnetic fields can trigger oxidative stress in human immune cells at levels well within everyday exposure ranges. The 1 mT (milliTesla) exposure used here is roughly equivalent to what you'd encounter standing directly under high-voltage power lines, but it's orders of magnitude higher than typical household exposures from appliances and wiring. What makes this research particularly significant is that it identifies a specific biological mechanism through which EMF exposure could contribute to health effects. The researchers found that magnetic fields activate cellular enzymes that produce reactive oxygen species, essentially putting immune cells into a state of oxidative stress. This finding fits into a broader pattern of research showing that EMF exposure can disrupt normal cellular processes, even when the energy levels are too low to cause heating. While this was a laboratory study using isolated cells rather than whole organisms, it demonstrates that magnetic fields can have measurable biological effects through well-understood biochemical pathways.