# Does a magnet affect the iron in my blood? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 6, 2007, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878 "2007-03-06T23:41:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DecafDonut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f07891/32.png) [@DecafDonut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DecafDonut)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2007, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/1 "2007-03-06T23:41:16Z")
I was watching Mythbusters and they had a small magnet about the size of a postage stamp which could lift about 25 pounds. He put a magnet on the front and back of his to show that they could stick through the thickness of his hand. But that got me thinking about the iron in blood. Does putting very strong magnets against your body attract blood to that area? Or is there not a sufficient density of iron in blood to matter? ---
**Author:** ![scm1001](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@scm1001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scm1001)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/2 "2007-03-07T00:15:48Z")
the iron in blood is in the form of individual iron atoms complexed to heamagoblin. Magnetism (strictly speaking ferro or ferrimagnetism) is a bulk event, requiring lots of irons atom very close together “talking” to each other. The iron in blood is too far apart. There is a very small paramagnetic or effect due to the iron, so a very strong magnet may have a tiny force. In a similar light, frogs etc have been levitated in a extremely strong magnetic field ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/3 "2007-03-07T00:17:03Z")
[QUOTE=DecafDonut] Or is there not a sufficient density of iron in blood to matter? [/QUOTE] Nope. None of the usual forms biological iron in humans form arrays big enough to exhibit ferromagnetism: [See this thread for more](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=2238139&highlight=ferritin#post2238139). ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/4 "2007-03-07T04:17:54Z")
> [@](#): > > There is a very small paramagnetic or effect due to the iron, so a very strong magnet may have a tiny force. In a similar light, frogs etc have been levitated in a extremely strong magnetic field There will also be a _diamagnetic_ effect from all the water in blood, meaning it’ll actually be repelled by a magnet. It’s very small, but the effect of the iron is much smaller yet, and it’s the diamagnetic effect that’s used to levitate frogs. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Zagna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@El\_Zagna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Zagna)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/5 "2007-03-07T16:39:59Z")
[Here](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_339.html) is Cecil’s explanation of how magnets work, and [here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=188045&highlight=magnets) is another discussion of magnets. My understanding of all this is that magnetism has to do with the outer shell of electrons being out of balance or spinning out of balance. When iron atoms combine with other atoms in your system to for hemoglobin, the the imbalance in the outer shell of electrons is canceled and thus the iron is no longer magnetic - or at least it becomes insignificantly magnetic. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/6 "2007-03-07T17:43:59Z")
[QUOTE=Chronos] There will also be a _diamagnetic_ effect from all the water in blood, meaning it’ll actually be repelled by a magnet. It’s very small, but the effect of the iron is much smaller yet, and it’s the diamagnetic effect that’s used to levitate frogs. [/QUOTE] Levitate frogs? ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/7 "2007-03-07T17:54:09Z")
Jeez. I just Googled this. I had no idea… ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/8 "2007-03-07T17:56:36Z")
[Levitating Frog video](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1vyB-O5i6E) ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/9 "2007-03-07T21:15:25Z")
Anybody know if heme is a high spin or low spin complex? I guess since your saying that its paramagnetic and it is Fe(II) it must be high-spin or it would not be paramagnetic. I guess that also depends on the ligand environment provided by th globin. I am assuming octahedral. Heme by itself is square planar. That is unless you talking about the oxygen bound Fe(III) complex which would almost have to be paramagnetic with high or low field ligands. I just can’t figure out where heme lies on the spectrochemical series. ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/10 "2007-03-07T21:26:58Z")
Maybe not, but [Magneto can](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UeUnVufJe3o). ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/11 "2007-03-07T22:34:35Z")
[QUOTE=Leaffan] Levitate frogs? [/QUOTE] Frogs? They can divert an [airplane](http://www.canada.com/topics/news/oddities/story.html?id=bce78538-f099-47a0-87a9-cf5b061ea1be&k=65894) when you wire them up to your butt. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/12 "2007-03-07T23:44:36Z")
> [@](#): > > Maybe not, but Magneto can. Except that wasn’t the iron naturally found in hemoglobin; that was from the big ol’ syringe of metallic iron that Mystique had injected into him at the bar the previous night. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2007, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/13 "2007-03-07T23:56:07Z")
Yup, it takes a [Nevian](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lensman) to build a magnetic device that’s strong enough to suck the iron out of a mans hemoglobin. ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2007, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/14 "2007-03-08T05:28:05Z")
[QUOTE=Chronos] Except that wasn’t the iron naturally found in hemoglobin; that was from the big ol’ syringe of metallic iron that Mystique had injected into him at the bar the previous night. [/QUOTE] Oh, fine, be a spoilsport. Next you’ll be pointing out that no amount of magnetic power could allow him to levitate an iron disk _that he was standing on!_ :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2007, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/15 "2007-03-08T05:30:16Z")
[QUOTE=Alan Smithee] Oh, fine, be a spoilsport. Next you’ll be pointing out that no amount of magnetic power could allow him to levitate an iron disk _that he was standing on!_ :dubious: [/QUOTE] Why not? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2007, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/16 "2007-03-08T05:35:20Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] Why not? [/QUOTE] Gravity. ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2007, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/17 "2007-03-08T05:37:58Z")
It would be like lifting yourself up by your own bootstraps. He can create as strong a pull between himself and the disk as he wants, but there is nothing for the disk to push against to get it and him off the ground. Maybe he is supposed to be opposing the disk’s field to the magnetic field of the earth, but I’m almost positive the earth’s magnetic field couldn’t possibly be close to strong enough. And if he could do that, and can create his own magnetic field, then he doesn’t need the disk, does he? ---
**Author:** ![scm1001](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@scm1001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scm1001)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2007, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/18 "2007-03-08T08:42:24Z")
[QUOTE=Christopher] Anybody know if heme is a high spin or low spin complex? I guess since your saying that its paramagnetic and it is Fe(II) it must be high-spin or it would not be paramagnetic. I guess that also depends on the ligand environment provided by th globin. I am assuming octahedral. Heme by itself is square planar. That is unless you talking about the oxygen bound Fe(III) complex which would almost have to be paramagnetic with high or low field ligands. I just can’t figure out where heme lies on the spectrochemical series. [/QUOTE] my limited knowledge and quick literature search suggest it can be either, depending on the complex, what is binding to it (O2, proteins , CO etc) and the temperature ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2007, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/19 "2007-03-08T16:13:35Z")
[QUOTE=Alan Smithee] It would be like lifting yourself up by your own bootstraps. He can create as strong a pull between himself and the disk as he wants, but there is nothing for the disk to push against to get it and him off the ground. Maybe he is supposed to be opposing the disk’s field to the magnetic field of the earth, but I’m almost positive the earth’s magnetic field couldn’t possibly be close to strong enough. And if he could do that, and can create his own magnetic field, then he doesn’t need the disk, does he? [/QUOTE] Just think of him as a giant frog. The same thing that levitates the frogs levitates him. The disks underfoot just look cool. ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2007, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878/20 "2007-03-08T17:13:18Z")
Iron can be either high-spin or low spin depending upon the complex, but hemoglobin is, for all intents and purposes here, one complex. This complex should be either high-spin or low-spin. At the crux of my question is “Where does heme lie on the spectrochemical series?” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-magnet-affect-the-iron-in-my-blood/394878.md?page=2)