The author of that article is a well-known quack.

There's nothing "quacky" in the article. It cites numberous studies, and there are many people who still don't know how dangerous it is to microwave in plastic.

Far be it from me to encourage people to use their microwaves, being that mine is primarily used to reheat cups of coffee that have gone cold and soften butter for spreading on bread...but with all the other health concerns one could focus on, I'm not going to worry about my microwave.

This guy makes his (very good) living by selling his mix of essentially unproven ideas (and products) using methods as old as snake-oil sales.

Much of the fear originally came from the general lack of distinction between two totally unrelated terminologies, namely radiation and radioactivity. One has nothing to do with the other and one is extremely dangerous to health.

Not trying to make this into a physics thread, I think when you use a hair dryer, which has a totally unshielded motor and heating coil, which uses about 1,500 watts of alternating power right next to your brain, there must be 100,000 times more electro-magnetic radiation going through your brain than a microwave oven.

As you may know, an alternating electromagnetic radiation will induce electricity in any conductive material within its field. (The transformer effect).

dcarch

Because he's correct on microwaving in plastic does not mean that the rest of the article holds water. And he IS a quack.

If I have to pick a device to blame for my breast cancer, I think I'll go with the fluoroscope, where I spent many happy childhood moments zapping myself with radiation in the Buster Brown shoe store.

Here is a link that might be useful: fluoroscope

I do not know of the validity of that column, nor do I think scientists know the extent of the effects caused by many of the processes we use daily, but I do not use a microwave oven.

I used to occassionally. When I first moved into my house, the kitchen was tiny. I kept a microwave on top of the bar-sized refrigerator. One day, I tried to reheat something. After a minute or so, the item still was not hot. I tried again. Nothing. I picked up the microwave to see if it was plugged in. The top of the refrigerator was melted. After a week, it was still in it's semi-liquid state. I took both items to the hazardous waste center. I never had a microwave in the kitchen again.

@Ruthanna LOLOLOL!!

Interesting ruthanna. I've never heard of the fluoroscope. I read the link you attached and it said they were phased out in the 50's. I was born in 1953 so that would explain it.

I'm not sure what I would blame for the stomach cancer I had 15 years ago. Stress perhaps. I worked on the trading floor of a financial firm. I don't ever want to have a job like that again.

I remember fluoroscopes at the Buster Brown shoe store where I grew up, and I also remember the goose that would lay a golden egg for me when my mother bought shoes for me there. I never used the fluoroscope - I think I was afraid of it. The golden egg had toys and/or candy in it - I can't remember because that was also back in the 1950s, but the goose got my attention much more than the fluoroscope.

I seldom use a microwave, and when I do, it is primarily to heat up tea. I prefer to use a steamer to heat up foods, or else the toaster oven or iron skillet. Since I have all my lunches at home now, I never use the MW at work.

Lars

Years ago I took a short class on how to use the microwave oven. They told us if the door seal developed a leak that any radiation wouldn't go farther than a foot or so.

Don't know if that's true but I stand back when it's on.

Sure....and there is a spider that hides under toilet seats and a sick kid who wants everyone to send him postcards and using antiperspirant will give you breast cancer.
And if you forward this to 10 friends in the next 5 minutes a duck will fly down and give you a million dollars.
Microwave change the molecular structure of foods? Yep! So does boiling and roasting and freezing!
Linda C

Consumer Reports weighs in on microwave safety.

Thanks, Gina, for the informative link.

"there is a spider that hides under toilet seats and a sick kid who wants everyone to send him postcards and using antiperspirant will give you breast cancer.
And if you forward this to 10 friends in the next 5 minutes a duck will fly down and give you a million dollars."

Linda, you just made me spit coffee on my monitor! LOL!!! :D

I don't use my microwave a lot, mostly to heat water for tea, warm up that cold coffee or heat a bowl of leftover soup. I have been known to husk an ear of corn and stick it in the microwave for a couple of minuites and have that for supper.

With all the stuff we eat and are exposed to, my microwave isn't a big worry for me, although my old one did catch fire and explode. Yup, an actual little "boom" and the door blew off. It was pretty exciting. (grin) And my old Harvest Maid dehydrator recently melted into a puddle, or the insides did, anyway, but Elery replaced that with a new Excaliber so I could continue to dry his hot peppers.

I think any appliance may be dangerous in the sense that they may malfunction, and I don't microwave in plastic, but I'm saving my worries for all the pesticides, herbicides and fungicides we are ingesting and/or breathing.

LindaC, there isn't a toilet seat spider lurking in airport bathrooms to bite me? Dang, I've got to tell my Mother, she's the one who forwarded that to me...

Annie

Goodness, I use mine to prepare almost all or part of every meal, I would be lost without it. I don't stand in front of it gazing at my food, though.

Your friend is desperately casting about for an explanation - people tend to become very superstitious at times like this. The country is not over-run with people with cancer caused by microwaves or microwaved food.

I think we can all safely continue to use this wonderful appliance.

I want to hear more about that spider.

My microwave has been out of commission for a few weeks (not an interesting enough story to bother telling) and I have only missed it slightly. I can easily revert to old school methods.

Barnmom, I don't use mine much so I probably wouldn't miss it but this was the first time I had heard all these negative claims. DH threw his out of the office as someone burned something so bad in it that the whole building commplained for a week.

If I didn't have a MW, I would never be able to find my lost (and cold again!) cup of coffee.

I'm with you, LindaC. Ruthana, thanks for the reminder - I'm going to blame my corn & hard nails on that fluoroscope. I always checked my feet in it in Nash's Dept Store until the shoe salesman finally ran me off.

"Posted by gina_w ------Consumer Reports weighs in on microwave safety. "

Very nice link. Thanks gina.

Let me go a little further in the last item in the report. Boiling pure water (distilled water, filtered water) in a new smooth container is very dagerous. It can get the water to superheat and this can happen:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC_NtH8vWSc&feature=related

dcarch

I don't cook in the microwave, but I do use it to melt chocolate, soften butter and warm up leftovers.

Linda, thanks for the laugh.

Ann