No, The COVID-19 Vaccine Will Not Make You Magnetic

With nearly 43% of Americans fully vaccinated, bizarre conspiracy theories surrounding vaccines are on the rise all over social media.

One of the most popular theories is that the COVID-19 vaccine can make your vaccination site and body magnetic.

People on social media, TikTok in particular, are claiming that after receiving the vaccine, magnets will now stick to their arms.

Even though this theory has been debunked by experts, some are still set on trying to prove it to be true.

Why do some people think the vaccine makes you magnetic?

There are many different reasons why the internet believes that the COVID-19 vaccine will make you magnetic.

One belief is based on the related conspiracy theory that there is a microchip in the vaccine.

This theory took flight when the cofounder of Microsoft, Bill Gates, invested millions of dollars to assist vaccination efforts.

Others believe that there are metals in the ingredients of the vaccine which cause the vaccination site specifically to be magnetic.

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What is the Magnet Challenge on TikTok?

The conspiracy theory has been dubbed the “magnet challenge” all over social media, with thousands of users posting videos of magnets either sticking to their skin or falling right to the floor.

One TikTok user, Robbsfilms, posted a three-part saga attempting to prove that the vaccine made magnets stick to him.

In the final part, he took the suggestion of another user telling him to apply baby powder to the skin to ensure that the magnet was not just clinging to his “sticky skin.”

After applying the baby powder, the magnet would not stick. The sudden loss of “magnetization” prompted Robbsfilms to end his video by saying, “I would like to issue a public apology...for being an idiot.”

A nurse in Ohio even tried to prove that the vaccine causes magnetization in front of the Ohio House Health Committee, only for her test to fail — twice.

On Wednesday, Joanna Overholt testified before the committee expressing the dangers of the vaccine. Overholt attempted to prove her theory by using a key and bobby pin.

Before sticking the key to her chest, she said, “Explain to me why the key sticks to me.”

The key, which was likely made of the non-magnetic metal brass, continued to fall each time Overholt removed her hand. She then proceeded to try the same thing with a bobby pin which also would not stick.

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How do we know the vaccine won’t make you magnetic?

Well, funny you should ask. With the rise of the conspiracy theory on social media, experts have come out and explained exactly why this popular rumor is not true.

According to Forbes, a microchip is not causing your skin to be magnetic.

A standard microchip is 13mm long (or approximately half an inch). A standard Covid-19 dose is “less than a milliliter (mL), with a typical dose for the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine being only about 0.3 mL.”

Because of this, a microchip would be far too large to fit into your vaccine.

Where metals in the vaccine are concerned, none of the COVID-19 vaccines approved in the United States contain metallic ingredients that could make you magnetic.

Humans are actually already a little bit magnetic due to the iron in our bodies. However, the iron in our blood is mostly attached to oxygen, causing magnets to be repelled. Blood also contains mostly water, which, again, slightly repels magnets.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has also put out a statement debunking the claim.

On their website, they detail how “Receiving a COVID-19 vaccine will not make you magnetic, including at the site of the vaccination.”

“COVID-19 vaccines do not contain ingredients that can produce an electromagnetic field at the site of your injection,” said the CDC.

The website also details how all of the COVID-19 vaccines are “free from metals such as iron, nickel, cobalt, lithium, and rare earth alloys, as well as any manufactured products such as microelectronics, electrodes, carbon nanotubes, and nanowire semiconductors.”

So, sorry TikTok users, the vaccine does not give you any magnetic superpowers.

The small magnets likely stick to your skin due to sticky skin from sweat or the natural oils on your body.

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Livvie Brault is a writer who covers self-love, entertainment and news and relationships.