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Review
. 2021 Jan 31;11(2):174.
doi: 10.3390/brainsci11020174.

Extremely Low-Frequency Magnetic Field as a Stress Factor-Really Detrimental?-Insight into Literature from the Last Decade

Angelika Klimek  1 , Justyna Rogalska  1
Affiliations
Review

Extremely Low-Frequency Magnetic Field as a Stress Factor-Really Detrimental?-Insight into Literature from the Last Decade

Angelika Klimek et al. Brain Sci. .

Abstract

Biological effects of extremely low-frequency magnetic field (ELF-MF) and its consequences on human health have become the subject of important and recurrent public debate. ELF-MF evokes cell/organism responses that are characteristic to a general stress reaction, thus it can be regarded as a stress factor. Exposure to ELF-MF "turns on" different intracellular mechanisms into both directions: compensatory or deleterious ones. ELF-MF can provoke morphological and physiological changes in stress-related systems, mainly nervous, hormonal, and immunological ones. This review summarizes the ELF-MF-mediated changes at various levels of the organism organization. Special attention is placed on the review of literature from the last decade. Most studies on ELF-MF effects concentrate on its negative influence, e.g., impairment of behavior towards depressive and anxiety disorders; however, in the last decade there was an increase in the number of research studies showing stimulating impact of ELF-MF on neuroplasticity and neurorehabilitation. In the face of numerous studies on the ELF-MF action, it is necessary to systematize the knowledge for a better understanding of the phenomenon, in order to reduce the risk associated with the exposure to this factor and to recognize the possibility of using it as a therapeutic agent.

Keywords: HPA axis; anxiety; behavior; catecholamines; cell survival; cytokines; hormones; magnetic field; neuroplasticity; stress.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Effects of extremely low-frequency magnetic field (ELF-MF) action in the organism.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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