static magnetic field and scalp

okiedokie

Hello!

I was just wondering, do static magnetic fields penetrate effectively into human tissue such as the scalp? What factors would affect the field? Blood flow? Ion gradients?

Thanks!

zoobyshoe

I have some strong neodymium magnets. If I hold them in my palm (palm facing up) I can get a screw or nail to hang from the back of my hand.

Drakkith

Yes they do, and I don't believe anything in the human body can significantly affect this.

M Quack

Static magnetic fields completely penetrate organic tissue.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) uses this fact. When you are in an MRI machine your head, knee, or whatever body part is imaged may be in fields as high as 3T.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetic_resonance_imaging

At the bottom of the Wiki entry, there is a safety section. It mentions no direct effects of static fields on the human body - only indirect ones, e.g. on implants such as pacemakers.

It is more difficult to find information on the direct effect of static fields on the human body. There appears to be "a small, reversible effect on electrocardiogam data. The cause is the interaction of moving blood (a conductive medium) and the field in the heart. The effect was minimal below about 2 T (but was seen as low as 0.1 T) and is not considered a concern."

http://www.ehs.cornell.edu/File/Magn...o_Guide_v3.pdf