Stress-related endocrinological and psychopathological effects of short- and long-term 50 Hz electromagnetic field exposure in rats
Szemerszky R, Zelena D, Barna I, Bárdos G. · 2010
View Original AbstractChronic magnetic field exposure at 0.5 mT caused depression-like symptoms in rats, suggesting long-term EMF exposure may contribute to mental health issues.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed rats to 50 Hz magnetic fields (the type from power lines) for either 5 days or 4-6 weeks to study stress effects. They found that long-term exposure led to depression-like behavior, elevated stress hormones, and higher blood glucose levels, while short-term exposure showed no effects. This suggests that chronic exposure to magnetic fields may act as a mild stressor that could contribute to depression and metabolic problems.
Why This Matters
This study adds important evidence to our understanding of how chronic magnetic field exposure affects mental health and stress responses. The 0.5 mT exposure level used here is significantly higher than typical household exposures (which range from 0.01-0.2 mT near appliances), but it's comparable to what you might experience living very close to power lines or working in high-EMF industrial environments. What makes this research particularly significant is that it demonstrates a clear duration-dependent effect - the same magnetic field that caused no problems after 5 days produced measurable depression-like symptoms after weeks of continuous exposure. The science demonstrates that our bodies may adapt to short-term EMF exposure but struggle with the chronic, 24/7 exposure that characterizes modern life. While the researchers appropriately note that human exposures are typically lower, this study suggests we should be concerned about the cumulative effects of long-term magnetic field exposure, especially for people living near power infrastructure or working in high-EMF environments.
Exposure Details
- Magnetic Field
- 0.5 mG
- Source/Device
- 50-Hz
- Exposure Duration
- 5 days, 8 h daily (short) or for 4–6 weeks, 24 h daily (long)
Exposure Context
This study used 0.5 mG for magnetic fields:
- 25Kx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.2 mG
- 5Kx 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 the present work was to study the long-term consequences of 50 Hz electromagnetic field (ELF-EMF) exposure with special focus on the development of chronic stress and stress-induced psychopathology.
Adult male Sprague–Dawley rats were exposed to ELF-EMF (50 Hz, 0.5 mT) for 5 days, 8 h daily (short)...
Both treatments were ineffective on somatic parameters, namely none of the changes characteristic to...
Show BibTeX
@article{r_2010_stressrelated_endocrinological_and_psychopathological_305,
author = {Szemerszky R and Zelena D and Barna I and Bárdos G. },
title = {Stress-related endocrinological and psychopathological effects of short- and long-term 50 Hz electromagnetic field exposure in rats},
year = {2010},
url = {https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0361923009003438},
}