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20 July 2008

Answer to Question #4690 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

Category: Security Screening — Airport Screening

The following question was answered by an expert in the appropriate field:

My daughter and I air traveled a little while ago and we got picked to be hand-wanded front and back, top to bottom by airport security personnel. On the way back one of the security people told us she really should not walk through the screening arch and be wanded if she is pregnant. So that made us worry since obviously it had already been done. Is it harmful for a pregnant woman to walk through the airport screening arch and be screened with a screening wand by security personnel and would it harm the developing baby?

The metal detector and the wand do not expose you to ionizing radiation, e.g., x rays. Metal detectors operate by generating a low-intensity magnetic field that passes from one side of the detector to the other. If metal objects pass through that field, the magnetic field will induce a second field in the metal object. Since that second field is a disruption of the first field, the detector senses the change and sets off an alarm. Because of its nonionizing properties, the low-level magnetic field generated in a metal detector will not cause harm to persons even with routine and/or repeated scanning.

Kelly Classic
Certified Medical Health Physicist

Answer posted on 10 August 2005. The information and material posted on this Web site is intended as general reference information only. Specific facts and circumstances may alter the concepts and applications of materials and information described herein. The information provided is not a substitute for professional advice and should not be relied upon in the absence of such professional advice specific to whatever facts and circumstances are presented in any given situation. Answers are correct at the time they are posted on the Web site. Be advised that over time, some requirements could change, new data could be made available, or Internet links could change. For answers that have been posted for several months or longer, please check the current status of the posted information prior to using the responses for specific applications.