why does the iron in our blood not get pulled in an MRI?
In: Biology
Because it’s not in an elemental ferrous state. Just like rust (iron oxide) isn’t magnetic anymore.
Magnetic metals are magnetic because the electrons in their atoms are aligned in a way that when introduced to an electric field, there is a net force in one direction, because all the atoms are “facing the same way”, thus every atom is pulled or pushed the same way. Most materials are not aligned/facing random directions so the forces cancel each other out. Iron has to be in this crystalline structure to be magnetic. The iron in your body is either mostly bound to proteins called hemoglobin or just loose, not in this crystalline structure, thus not magnetic.
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