Your smartphone may be causing havoc to your pacemaker!

If there is an implanted medical device inside your body, chances are that its functioning may be affected due to the use of smartphones or smartwatches. Doctors have long noted the effects of external magnets on implanted medical devices. However, until now, they did not feel that the magnets in smartphones posed a significant risk.

To study the impact of the smart devices, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max and Apple Watch 6 were included. Researchers of the study, published in the medical journal Heart Rhythm, measured the static magnetic fields of the iPhones under study and the Apple Watch. 

Implanted pacemakers or cardioverter defibrillators also contain a magnet inside them which is activated by doctors during implantation. When an iPhone was brought close by, a potential interaction between the magnet of the smartphone and the magnet of the implanted medical device was observed. 

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The pacemakers or the defibrillators were at the risk of getting disabled. When these implanted devices get disabled, it can result in life-threatening abnormalities. 

The findings of the study uphold the FDA advisory for individuals to keep electronic devices at least 15 centimeters away from implanted devices, especially pacemakers and defibrillators.

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