Magnetic Fields and the Number of Blood Platelets
Madeleine F. Barnothy, Jeno M. Barnothy · 1970
Strong magnetic fields can force blood platelet-producing cells to relocate from bone marrow to spleen in just 20 days.
Plain English Summary
This 1970 study exposed mice to strong magnetic fields for 20 days and found that platelet-producing cells (megakaryocytes) decreased in bone marrow while increasing in the spleen. The research suggests magnetic field exposure can alter where blood platelets are produced in the body, potentially affecting blood clotting function.
Why This Matters
This early research reveals that magnetic fields can disrupt normal blood cell production, forcing platelet-producing cells to migrate from bone marrow to the spleen. What makes this particularly relevant today is that we're surrounded by magnetic fields from power lines, electric appliances, and wireless devices operating at much lower intensities but for much longer durations than this 20-day experiment. While this study used laboratory-strength magnetic fields, the biological principle it demonstrates - that magnetic exposure can alter fundamental blood cell processes - raises important questions about chronic, lower-level exposures we face daily. The fact that such effects were documented in 1970, decades before our current EMF-saturated environment, underscores how long scientists have understood that electromagnetic fields can influence basic cellular functions.
Original Figures
Diagram extracted from the original research document.
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study.
Show BibTeX
@article{magnetic_fields_and_the_number_of_blood_platelets_g6940,
author = {Madeleine F. Barnothy and Jeno M. Barnothy},
title = {Magnetic Fields and the Number of Blood Platelets},
year = {1970},
}