I will NEVER use a microwave again!!
hannahlang85
Posts: 18 Member
So I was doing a little research on my laptop today and I found a fascinating article. I am considering living a raw vegan lifestyle so I was looking up on Google, "Can cooking food change nutritional value?" and I learned more than I expected! I highly recommend you take a second out of your day and read the article. Hopefully it will change your way of heating up food like it changed mine! It's for your own safety!
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/05/18/microwave-hazards.aspx
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/05/18/microwave-hazards.aspx
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Couldn't read it because a subscription box popped up, had no way of closing, and wouldn't move out of the way. But just the title sounds like a load of crap. You're lying when you say you'll never use a microwave again.
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Haha your wrong. If you would've read the article then you would agree with me. I PROMISE to never use one again unless its to steralize something...0
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Yeah, I didn't read it either because the box popped up and I didn't want to subscribe. Oh well
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. Breathing is dangerous, drinking water is dangerous, eating can kill you. Also the studies go back to way back when ,and technology changed a little in the past 20 years.I still wanted to follow up on reading this, since i like to be informed. Just googles the subject and there is penty Info outthere.
Here is a website that does not bring the pop up. BTW I had no problem closing it.
http://www.health-science.com/microwave_hazards.html
Definitely sobering. Thanks for posting0 -
Just something else to add to the list of things people say might be harmful. The list is getting so long I don't know how any of us are even walking around anymore!
I should say I did not read the article. From the pop up I gathered it was trying to sell me something. No Thanks! 0 -
I read the article and I do not agree w/ it. Hots spots? Yes. Exploding eggs? Been there, done that. But leaking microwaves? Only if your micro is from 1980 or earlier. Nowadays they are made solid, they just don't leak. Sounds like articale was written by someone trying to sell me the next best gadget for cooking. The whole tone was a sales pitch for the raw food movement. i don't buy it. I don't use the MW for everything but it is a neccessity in my house no doubt. You can throw your out if you like, but I am quite content w/ mine.0
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and p.s. for the people who couldn't read cuz of pop up, I just scrolled around it, reading above the box as the window was still active behind it. tricky tricky . 0
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and p.s. for the people who couldn't read cuz of pop up, I just scrolled around it, reading above the box as the window was still active behind it. tricky tricky .
Haha. I didn't have the patience for that. 0 -
It actually had nothing to do with raw eating. Just a random article I found about cooking food. They weren't selling anything, I read the whole thing And thank you slim4lyf for taking a look. It really sobered me up to. It does make since to me the "WAY" it heats food up. It's just not the safest... not that it'll kill you. I'm just going to use a pot or oven the next time I need to heat something up 0
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Thanks for sharing Very informative. I already knew the one about not heating up things in plastic, makes total sense. 0
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just remember not to use a pot with teflon!0
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I feel so violated!!!!!!!! Nothing is safeeeeee
Just looked this up, also interesting.
http://whatscookingamerica.net/LindaPosch/ToxicCookware.htm0 -
Um.
"In 1991, there was a lawsuit in Oklahoma concerning the hospital use of a microwave oven to warm blood needed in a transfusion. The case involved a hip surgery patient, Norma Levitt, who died from a simple blood transfusion. It seems the nurse had warmed the blood in a microwave oven. This tragedy makes it very apparent that there's much more to "heating" with microwaves than we've been led to believe. Blood for transfusions is routinely warmed, but not in microwave ovens. In the case of Mrs. Levitt, the microwaving altered the blood and it killed her."
This just about killed me, because part of my job is to provide blood products to hospital wards for transfusion.
NOTICE that it mentions that blood for transfusions is *NOT ROUTINELY WARMED IN A MICROWAVE*. Microwaving red blood cells would likely cause their membranes to break open (similar to what might happen if someone microwaved any other thing with cells), which would release a host of clot-forming substances and if you transfused the whole bag the cell membranes would clog up the kidneys and cause renal failure. So, yes, microwaving the blood altered it, but when you do something as mindblowingly stupid as this, *kitten* like this happens.
Also:
"According to Dr. Lee, changes are observed in the blood chemistries and the rates of certain diseases among consumers of microwaved foods." Let's not forget that a lot of microwaved foods are full of processed junk anyways, so maybe we shouldn't be so quick to panic about how we cook them.
THIS is why I hold such disdain for junk science--it's based on facts that aren't necessarily 100% true, then skews it to sound more sensationalist than it really is. I'm sorry to come off as such a jerk, but honestly, I feel like we're all being taken for a ride by people who sit and review one or two books or studies and then write a fearmongering article for the fun of it. I don't mean to crab at you, sld21--sorry--but please understand that if you look hard enough, everything is out to get you.0 -
Couldn't read it because a subscription box popped up, had no way of closing, and wouldn't move out of the way. But just the title sounds like a load of crap. You're lying when you say you'll never use a microwave again.
Why does she have to be lying? I threw out the microwave about 7 months ago (when we moved and relocated) and don't miss it.
I bought these gel heat packs for my DH and my lunch stuff and when we heat leftovers we heat on the stove or in the oven.0 -
Couldn't read it because a subscription box popped up, had no way of closing, and wouldn't move out of the way. But just the title sounds like a load of crap. You're lying when you say you'll never use a microwave again.
Why does she have to be lying? I threw out the microwave about 7 months ago (when we moved and relocated) and don't miss it.
I bought these gel heat packs for my DH and my lunch stuff and when we heat leftovers we heat on the stove or in the oven.
I agree, I don't think it's fair to say that a person who you know nothing about is lying about a choice they've made. While I have no intention of getting rid of my microwave, I lived as an adult without one for a number of years and did just fine.0 -
Couldn't read it because a subscription box popped up, had no way of closing, and wouldn't move out of the way. But just the title sounds like a load of crap. You're lying when you say you'll never use a microwave again.
Why does she have to be lying? I threw out the microwave about 7 months ago (when we moved and relocated) and don't miss it.
I bought these gel heat packs for my DH and my lunch stuff and when we heat leftovers we heat on the stove or in the oven.
Same here, haven't used the microwave in a few years. I prepare my foods much differently then I used to.0 -
To offer something different I am going to give a little spiel from the perspective of someone who has gotten rid of her microwave!
Okay, well my family has known about some of the potential harm of microwaves for awhile, but we haven't had one in our house since Aug 2001. Honestly, at first it sounds like a huge inconvenience, but you quickly discover that a toaster oven is really quick and usually produces a more desirable effect on the food (for me...). Other things are quickly heated up on the stove
Personally, I really can't say I ever miss having a microwave. In restaurants there are certain items normally cooked by microwave, that I ask the server about, if it is cooked by microwave, I get something different. No biggie. In college if I was at a friends house and they wanted to "nuke" something I rarely ever had to speak up for myself, since my friends all enjoyed informing those not in the know that I don't use microwaves.
The main thing, health wise, is that there have been a number of studies done indicating possible harm. Not to be a complete conspiracy theorist, but I just truly believe that the industry that is microwaves, and microwavable food (at the grocery store and in restaurants) is too big for the FDA or whoever else to ever be willing to ban it now, unless something drastic starts happening. Money talks!
Do I know that using a microwave gives you cancer or whatever else?
No!
I do have reasonable doubt though. So given a possible threat from something which over the last decade has proven to be virtually useless to me I can't say I regret the decision or that I will ever change.
I mean, yes there is a long long list of potentially harmful things, and it is impossible to eliminate them all, but I think that anyone who has joined this website is taking on a duty to ourselves to try and get rid of those things we can. If you feel you can't, fine, but not using it is really not something that needs to be looked down upon.
So there it is, my parents, brother and sister and I don't own microwaves!0 -
I don't even own a microwave! And haven't for over 17 years. I never used it when I had it so it was just taking up space.
I make everything from scratch and can't stand frozen or canned veggies! Fresh is best, in everything. I don't eat leftovers either.0 -
if you microwave gummy worms they melt, and starbursts get like playdough for a little while (super fun), and peeps get HUGE..microwaves are such fun....0
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I don't trust this article. Why aren't there a list of sources at the end. I would want to read the original findings myself before making any conclusions, but here are some thoughts i had on it:
1. Heating anything, whether it be by microwave, stove top, etc. will denature proteins and cause chemical changes.
2. If you're stupid enough to heat the baby's milk in the PLASTIC bottle and don't bother to test the temperature before you give it to the baby, you deserve a crying baby for the next three days from have a burnt mouth and tongue. (I feel sorry for the child for having such parents without common sense).
3. The Nazi's did not "discover" microwave ovens. The fact that microwaves heated food was discovered by a guy working with microwave tubes and noticed his chocolate bar melted. Though, of course it has a nice effect in the article, "if the Nazi's created it, it must be bad..."
http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/magazine/it/2005/4/2005_4_48.shtml
4. Our mother didn't trust it, so it must be bad!
5. microwaving the blood. Let's see, they discuss else where that microwaving breaks down the cell membrane, which happens in any sort of heating, just easier to control in other methods. So if you microwave the blood and all of the red blood cells pop...
All I'm saying is this is the internet. It is great for gaining information, but you always have to take it with a grain of salt. I'm not saying that everything is a lie, but here is an interesting forum topic discussing this very thing, with one post talking about the "scholarly" articles mentioned:
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=6393&page=30 -
Couldn't read it because a subscription box popped up, had no way of closing, and wouldn't move out of the way. But just the title sounds like a load of crap. You're lying when you say you'll never use a microwave again.
That's a load of crock - who are you to say she's lying (what - humans can't survive without microwaves?? That's laughable, and maybe says more about you that you would say that)??
I have not had a microwave for 6 years - well, I never really had one, but I used to let rooms out in my flat when i was a student to make some money, and someone always brought a microwave with them. I personally have never owned one. My last flatmate used hers to warm up frozen mice to feed to her snake, but other than that she never really used it either. My parents have never had one - and despite being in their 70s my dad is a gadget and technology freak, so if it was worth having he would have gotten one when they cam out!
I cook things ON THE STOVE, or IN THE OVEN. It's a novel idea ;-)
Oh, and I managed to get rid of the pop up - I don't know if it may be the filter on my work PC, but here it is. I'm not saying the article is 100% accurate, but I'm reposting just in case anyone wants to read it. For information.
"By now, you probably know that what you eat has a profound impact on your health. The mantra, “You are what you eat” is really true.
But you need to consider not only WHAT you buy, but how you cook it.
Eating most of your food raw is ideal. But most of us are not going to be able to accomplish a completely raw diet, and we’ll end up cooking some percentage of our food.
Smart food preparation starts with high quality foods and food preparation and that means saying sayonara to your microwave oven. Need to sterilize a dishcloth? Use your microwave. But zapping your casserole is a BAD idea if you are interested in preparing healthy food.
Why the no nukes policy?
When it comes to microwave ovens, the price for convenience is to compromise your health. In this article, I will review what we know about the effects microwaves on your food and on your body.
Sad State of Our Soils
Over the past century, the quality of fresh food has declined due to soil depletion, unsustainable farming practices, overproduction of crops, and the use of pesticides and herbicides. You can no longer assume you’re getting all of the vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and phytonutrients you need by eating a multitude of fresh produce—even if you’re eating organically.
Not surprisingly, a calorie today will provide you less nutrition than a calorie from 100, or even 50 years ago.
Three recent studies of historical food composition have shown 5 to 40 percent declines in some of the minerals in fresh produce, and another study found a similar decline in our protein sources.[1]
So now, more than ever, you must be careful to maximize the “bang for your buck” when it comes to the foods you eat.
Research shows that your microwave oven will NOT help you in these efforts—and in fact will threaten your health by violently ripping the molecules in your food apart, rendering some nutrients inert, at best, and carcinogenic at its worst.
Convenience Comes at Significant Toxic Threat to You and Your Family
Microwaves heat food by causing water molecules in it to resonate at very high frequencies and eventually turn to steam which heats your food. While this can rapidly heat your food, what most people fail to realize is that it also causes a change in your food’s chemical structure.
There are numerous issues that have emerged since microwave ovens were first introduced to consumers more than 40 years ago, besides depleting your food’s nutritional value, which will be addressed a bit later.
The first thing you probably noticed when you began microwaving food was how uneven the heating is.
“Hot spots” in microwaved food can be hot enough to cause burns—or build up to a “steam explosion.” This has resulted in admonitions to new mothers about NOT using the microwave to heat up baby bottles, since babies have been burned by super-heated formula that went undetected.
Another problem with microwave ovens is that carcinogenic toxins can leach out of your plastic and paper containers/covers, and into your food.
The January/February 1990 issue of Nutrition Action Newsletter reported the leakage of numerous toxic chemicals from the packaging of common microwavable foods, including pizzas, chips and popcorn. Chemicals included polyethylene terpthalate (PET), benzene, toluene, and xylene. Microwaving fatty foods in plastic containers leads to the release of dioxins (known carcinogens) and other toxins into your food. [8] [2]
One of the worst contaminants is BPA, or bisphenol A, an estrogen-like compound used widely in plastic products. In fact, dishes made specifically for the microwave often contain BPA, but many other plastic products contain it as well.
Microwaving distorts and deforms the molecules of whatever food or other substance you subject to it. An example of this is blood products.
Blood is normally warmed before being transfused into a person. Now we know that microwaving blood products damages the blood components. In fact, one woman died after receiving a transfusion of microwaved blood in 1991 , which resulted in a well-publicized lawsuit.
Microwave Radiation Leakage
You may have heard that there is some danger of microwaves escaping from your microwave while it’s operating. This was more of a risk with earlier models than with recent ones, which undergo more rigorous testing.
Theoretically, there are very small amounts of radiation leakage through the viewing glass, but the FDA reports these levels are “insignificant” and “well below the level known to harm people.”
The FDA has been regulating microwave ovens since 1971 through its electronic product radiation control program, which is mandated by the Electronic Product Radiation Control provisions of the Food Drug and Cosmetic Act[3] .
The FDA limits the amount of microwaves that can leak from an oven throughout its lifetime to 5 milliwatts (mW) per square centimeter at approximately 2 inches from the oven surface. Because microwave energy decreases dramatically as you move away from the source of the radiation, a measurement made 20 inches from your oven would be approximately one-hundredth of the value measured at 2 inches.[2]
The federal standard also requires all ovens to have “two independent interlock systems that stop the production of microwaves the moment the latch is released or the door is opened.”
And a monitoring system is also required, which stops the operation if one or both interlock systems fail.
You would think, with all these tests and regulations, that you’d be safe. However, according to Powerwatch, a non-profit independent organization with a central role in the microwave radiation debate:
“Even when the microwave oven is working correctly, the microwave levels within the kitchen are likely to be significantly higher than those from any nearby cellular phone base-stations. Remember also that microwaves will travel through walls if the microwave oven is against an inside wall.”
Powerwatch also states that we don’t really know if the current regulations about leakage are truly safe and recommends ovens be checked at least annually, since microwave emissions can change with normal use.
You might also consider purchasing a $20 testing device that allows you to check the radiation in your home.
Make sure that, if you are going to use your microwave for cleaning sponges or for any use at all, regularly examine the door and hinges to make sure they are sealing properly. If the door doesn’t close correctly, or if it’s warped, bent, or otherwise damaged, don’t use it at all!
Since your eyes are known to be particularly susceptible to microwave radiation (high microwave exposures are known to cause cataracts), I recommend stepping away from your microwave while it’s in use.
New Study Confirms Microwaves Affect Your Heart
A recent study examining the effects 2.4 GHz radiation (which is the frequency of radiation emitted by Wifi routers and microwave ovens) on the heart was just completed. The study found “unequivocal evidence” that microwave frequency radiation affects the heart at non-thermal levels that are well below federal safety guidelines, according to Dr. Magda Havas of Trent University[4] .
Dr. Havas says:
“This is the first study that documents immediate and dramatic changes in both heart rate and heart rate variability caused by an approved device that generates microwaves at levels well below (0.3 percent) federal guidelines in both Canada and the United States.”
No longer can skeptics claim that microwaves produce no immediate biological effects at ordinary household levels!
The study will be appearing in a peer-reviewed journal sometime during the summer of 2010. If you are experiencing rapid or irregular heartbeat, pain or pressure in your chest, you will want to visit your physician and share this video with him or her (second video on this page).
There is also evidence that this same frequency of radiation causes blood sugar to spike in susceptible individuals and may actually be the cause of one type of diabetes. For details about this, watch the first video below.
Microwaving Also Zaps the Nutrients Right Out of Your Food
There has been surprisingly little research on how microwaves affect organic molecules, or how the human body responds to consuming microwaved food.
Wouldn’t you expect that a product that sits in more than 90 percent of kitchens, as well as practically every break room in the country, would have been thoroughly investigated for safety?
The handful of studies that have been done generally agree, for the most part, that microwaving food damages its nutritional value. Your microwave turns your beautiful, organic veggies, for which you’ve paid such a premium in money or labor, into “dead” food that can cause disease!
Heating food, in and of itself, can result in some nutrient loss, but using microwaves to heat food introduces the additional problem of the “microwave effect,” a phenomenon that will be discussed in detail later.
The majority of studies on microwaves and nutrition were conducted prior to 2000, I suspect because the focus of radiation research of late has shifted toward a more ominous threat: environmental radiation from electromagnetic devices, such as cell phones and computers, which has mushroomed into a gigantic cloud of electrosmog worldwide over the past decade.
Nevertheless, some excellent scientific data has been gathered regarding the detrimental effects of microwaves on the nutrients in your food:
A study published in the November 2003 issue of The Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture[5] found that broccoli "zapped" in the microwave with a little water lost up to 97 percent of its beneficial antioxidants. By comparison, steamed broccoli lost 11 percent or fewer of its antioxidants. There were also reductions in phenolic compounds and glucosinolates, but mineral levels remained intact.
A 1999 Scandinavian study of the cooking of asparagus spears found that microwaving caused a reduction in vitamin C[6] .
In a study of garlic, as little as 60 seconds of microwave heating was enough to inactivate its allinase, garlic’s principle active ingredient against cancer[7] .
A Japanese study by Watanabe showed that just 6 minutes of microwave heating turned 30-40 percent of the B12 in milk into an inert (dead) form[8] . This study has been cited by Dr. Andrew Weil as evidence supporting his concerns about the effects of microwaving. Dr. Weil wrote:
“There may be dangers associated with microwaving food... there is a question as to whether microwaving alters protein chemistry in ways that might be harmful."
A recent Australian study[9] showed that microwaves cause a higher degree of “protein unfolding” than conventional heating.
Microwaving can destroy the essential disease-fighting agents in breast milk that offer protection for your baby. In 1992, Quan found that microwaved breast milk lost lysozyme activity, antibodies, and fostered the growth of more potentially pathogenic bacteria[10] .
Quan stated that more damage was done to the milk by microwaving than by other methods of heating, concluding: “Microwaving appears to be contraindicated at high-temperatures, and questions regarding its safety exist even at low temperatures.”
Another study about breast milk/infant formula by Lee in 1989[11] found vitamin content becomes depleted by microwaving, and certain amino acids are converted into other substances that are biologically inactive. Some altered amino acids are poisons to the nervous system and kidneys. (Numerous authors mention this study, yet I was unable to find the original article/study, so I cannot personally validate.)
Although many of the above studies are not new, there is certainly ample evidence that microwaving is NOT good for your food.
How Your Microwave Actually Heats Your Food
Microwaves are a form of electromagnetic radiation—waves of electrical and magnetic energy moving together through space. EM radiation ranges from very high energy (gamma rays and x-rays) on one end of the spectrum to very low energy (radio waves) on the other end of the spectrum.
Microwaves are on the low energy end of the spectrum, second only to radio waves. They have a wavelength of about 4.8 inches—about the width of your head.
Microwaves are generated by something called a magnetron (a term derived from the words “magnet” and “electron”), which is also what enabled airborne radar use during WWII. Hence the early name for microwave ovens: radar ranges.
A magnetron is a tube in which electrons are subjected to both magnetic and electrical fields, producing an electromagnetic field with a microwave frequency of about 2,450 megaHertz (MHz), which is 2.4 gigaHertz (GHz).
Microwaves cause dielectric heating. They bounce around the inside of your oven and are absorbed by the food you put in it. Since water molecules are bipolar, having a positive end and negative end, they rotate rapidly in the alternating electric field. The water molecules in the food vibrate violently at extremely high frequencies—like millions of times per second—creating molecular friction, which heats up the food.
If the food or object place in the microwave had no water it would not be able to have this resonance heating type effect and would remain cool. Or, as investigative journalist William Thomas[12] calls it, “electrical whiplash.”
Structures of the water molecules are torn apart and forcefully deformed. This is different than conventional heating of food, whereby heat is transferred convectionally from the outside, inward. Microwave cooking begins within the molecules where water is present.
Contrary to popular belief, microwaved foods don’t cook “from the inside out.” When thicker foods are cooked, microwaves heat the outer layers, and the inner layers are cooked mostly by the conduction of heat from the hot outer layers, inward.
Since not all areas contain the same amount of water, the heating is uneven.
Additionally, microwaving creates new compounds that are not found in humans or in nature, called radiolytic compounds. We don’t yet know what these compounds are doing to your body.
In addition to the violent frictional heat effects, called thermic effects, there are also athermic effects, which are poorly understood because they are not as easily measured. It is these athermic effects that are suspected to be responsible for much of the deformation and degradation of cells and molecules. [13]
As an example, microwaves are used in the field of gene altering technology to weaken cell membranes. Scientists use microwaves to actually break cells apart. Impaired cells then become easy prey for viruses, fungi and other microorganisms.8
Another word for these athermic effects is the “microwave effect,” a subject of controversy that I’ll get into a bit later.
Microwave Sickness
When your tissues are directly exposed to microwaves, the same violent deformations occur and can cause “microwave sickness.”
People who have been exposed to high levels of microwave radiation experience a variety of symptoms, including:
Insomnia, night sweats, and various sleep disturbances
Headaches and dizziness
Swollen lymph nodes and a weakened immune system
Impaired cognition
Depression and irritability
Nausea and appetite loss
Vision and eye problems
Frequent urination and extreme thirst
There is a good amount of data emerging that people are suffering, to various degrees, these kinds of symptoms from living next to cell phone towers and other high-frequency radiation emitting antennas, which emit microwaves around the clock.
According to Professor Franz Adelkofer, a leading scientist in the area of biological effects of EMF fields:
"There is real evidence that hyperfrequency electromagnetic fields can have geno-toxic effects. And this damaged DNA is always the cause of cancer.
We’ve found these damaging effects on the genes at levels well below the safety limits. That’s why we think it’s urgent to base our safety limits on the biological effects, not the thermic ones.
They should be based on biology, not on physics.”
Twenty Years of Russian Research Supports Microwave Concerns
The Nazis are credited with inventing the first microwave-cooking device to provide mobile food support to their troops during their invasion of the Soviet Union in World War II[14] . These first microwave ovens were experimental. After the war, the US War Department was assigned the task of researching the safety of microwave ovens.
But it was the Russians who really took the bull by the horns.
After the war, the Russians had retrieved some of these microwave ovens and conducted thorough research on their biological effects. Alarmed by what they learned, the Russians banned microwave ovens in 1976, later lifting the ban during Perestroika.
Twenty years of Russian research (and German studies as far back as 1942 Berlin) make a strong argument against the safety of microwave cooking.
Their findings led the Russian government to issue an international warning about possible biological and environmental damage associated with the use of microwave ovens and other similar frequency electronic devices (e.g. mobile phones).
I was not able to personally evaluate any of these older bodies of research, since those documents are now difficult to track down, so I can’t attest to their methodology or conclusions. All you can do is weigh their findings appropriately, as best you can.
The Powerwatch article cited above summarizes the Russian research quite well, which I will duplicate below.
Russian investigators found that carcinogens were formed from the microwaving of nearly all foods tested.
The microwaving of milk and grains converted some of the amino acids into carcinogenic substances.
Microwaving prepared meats caused the formation of the cancer-causing agents d-Nitrosodienthanolamines.
Thawing frozen fruits by microwave converted their glucoside and galactoside fractions into carcinogenic substances.
Extremely short exposure of raw, cooked or frozen vegetables converted their plant alkaloids into carcinogens.
Carcinogenic free radicals were formed in microwaved plants—especially root vegetables.
Structural degradation leading to decreased food value was found to be 60 to 90 percent overall for all foods tested, with significant decreases in bioavailability of B complex vitamins, vitamins C and E, essential minerals, and lipotropics (substances that prevent abnormal accumulation of fat).
I might add that this finding is supported by the 1998 Japanese study by Watanabe7 about vitamin B12 in milk, cited above.
The Swiss Clinical Study: Hans Hertel
Some fairly compelling evidence supporting the destructive effects of microwaves comes from a highly cited study by a Swiss food scientist named Hans Hertel. Dr. Hertel was the first scientist to study the effects of microwaved foods on the blood and physiology of human beings.
His small study, coauthored by Dr. Bernard Blanc of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and the University Institute for Biochemistry, revealed the degenerative forces produced by microwave ovens on the foods they cooked.
Dr. Hertel concluded that microwave cooking changed the nutrients in the food, and that changes took place in the blood that could cause negative health effects.
Hertel’s conclusions were that microwaving food resulted in:
Increased cholesterol levels
Decreased numbers of leukocytes (white blood cells), which can suggest poisoning
Decreased numbers of red blood cells
Production of radiolytic compounds
Decreased hemoglobin levels, which could indicate anemia
Not surprisingly, Dr. Hertel's study was met with great resistance from those with much to lose.
A gag order against Dr. Hertel was issued by a Swiss trade organization in 1992, which was later removed in 1998. But an American journalist, Tom Valentine, published the results of Hertel’s study in Search for Health in the spring of 1992[15] .
The study was not without its shortcomings. It involved only eight participants, of which Hertel was one. As compelling as his findings were, his methodology did not stand up to the scientific rigors of the field.
In spite of Hertel’s methodological shortcomings, his findings do raise concerns about what this form of radiation is doing to your food and should be taken as a launching point to larger, more robust studies in the future.
Hertel wrote:
“There are no atoms, molecules, or cells of any organic system able to withstand such a violent, destructive power for any period of time. This will happen even given the microwave oven’s low power range of milliwatts.”
And then there is the issue of biophotons.
Possible Microwave Effects on Your Biophotons
Biophotonics is the study, research, and applications of photons in their interactions within and on biological systems. Much of the work in the area of biophotons was done in Germany. Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt discusses biophotons in our 2008 interview.
Biophotons are the smallest physical units of light that are stored in and used by all biological organisms—including you. Vital sun energy finds its way into your cells via the food you eat, in the form of these biophotons.
Biophotons contain important bio-information and are very important to many vital processes in your body. They are partly responsible for your feeling of vitality and well-being. You gain biophotons by eating foods rich in them, such as naturally grown fresh vegetables and sun-ripened fruits, which are rich in light energy.
The more light energy a food is able to store, the more nutritious it is.
If the “microwave effect” exists (as you shall see, there is a huge amount of evidence that it does), then microwaves can potentially destroy biophotons in the same way that it alters other structures, rendering your food dead and lifeless.
It seems quite plausible that microwaves could disrupt or destroy biophotons, since they are capable of breaking apart DNA bonds!
As far as I can find, there haven’t been any studies of the direct effects of microwave radiation on biophotons, but it seems like an important angle of investigation for the future.
Long-Term Effects of Exposure to Non-Ionizing Radiation
One of the basic controversies about the effects of microwaves centers on whether or not microwaves exert some sort of force beyond heat, commonly called “microwave effect” or “athermic effect.”
It is first necessary that you understand the difference between ionizing radiation and non-ionizing radiation.
There are two basic forms of radiation: ionizing and non-ionizing[16] :
Ionizing Radiation: Creates charged ions by displacing electrons in atoms, even without heat. Examples are radiation emitted from radioactive substances in rocks and soil, cosmic rays of the sun, and radiation from man-made technology such as x-rays machines, power stations, and nuclear reactors.
Non-ionizing Radiation: Can change the position of atoms but not alter their structure, composition, and properties. Examples are visible light, ultraviolet and infrared waves, waves from radio or television, cellular phones, microwaves, and electric blankets.
Despite not being able to break atoms apart, non-ionizing radiation (such as microwaves) CAN cause physical alterations.
For example, sunlight can damage your skin and eyes. Overexposure to radiation can affect tissues by causing molecular damage, DNA mutations, and other changes that can lead to cancer.
The serious concern is, with all of this radiation surrounding us from cell and cordless phones, radio towers, satellites, broadcast antennas, military and aviation radar, home electronic devices, computers and Internet, we are all part of an involuntary mass epidemiological experiment, on a scale never before seen in the history of the human race.
And the truth is that we don’t really KNOW what long term, low-level (but persistent) radiation does to us—even the non-ionizing type.
But here are some of the things we DO KNOW:[17]
Effects at low levels can be more noticeable than at higher levels. There is something called a “window effect,” meaning an effect occurring only at specific frequencies or power densities, but not occurring just above or below them. A number of studies demonstrate effects of microwave radiation on blood cells via this phenomenon.
For a complete discussion of this, you can read Microwaving Our Planet, written by Arthur Firstenberg, president of the Cellular Phone Taskforce.
Cindy Sage of Sage Associates, an environmental consulting firm, has compiled a comprehensive list of studies[18] showing biological effects at radiofrequency exposure levels far below what would be explainable as “thermic effects” and well within the range you are commonly exposed to every day.
Resonance intensifies biological effect. Resonance occurs when a form of radiation has a similar frequency as a body part. For example, microwave frequencies are similar to the frequencies of your brain!
Studies are typically done for short exposure periods, at higher intensities. Scientists claim that duration of exposure is equally important to intensity of exposure, but is often NOT studied, and that long-term, low-level exposure can have effects equivalent to short-term, more intense exposure.
The effects of radiation are cumulative. Your body becomes more sensitive to it over time.
There are no longer any control groups, since human beings are all now exposed to such pervasive radiation. Lack of a control group makes it even more challenging to conduct meaningful studies.
The point is, standing in your kitchen while your microwave is zapping your dinner, night after night, will not make you glow in the dark. But over the months and years, what is the cumulative effect on your body and health?
Why expose yourself to these potential dangers when there are safer alternatives for cooking available?
Is Microwaving Food Any More Dangerous than Heating it with a Conventional Oven?
Some experts claim that the effects microwaves have on molecules can all be explained simply as the “thermic effect” of heating—in other words, microwave cooking is no more detrimental to food than conventional heating.
They argue that, since microwaves are non-ionizing radiation, then it’s impossible for them to damage your blood cells, or eradicate the folic acid in your spinach.
Others have proposed there is some sort of “microwave effect” that causes changes in the molecules in a way that conventional heating does not. For many years, the party line was that “microwave effect” is a myth.
However, study after study has resulted in evidence to the contrary, showing effects that cannot be explained away as simple thermal effects.
In a letter entitled “DNA and the Microwave Effect”[19] (sourced as Penn State University, 2001), the author reviews the history of the controversy surrounding the microwave effect and the research findings to date. He explains that, although fundamentals of thermodynamics and physics would tell you the microwave effect is impossible, studies keep turning up evidence of its existence.
Some of the main points made in the letter are the following:
Microwave heating and conventional heating may appear identical on a “macro” level, but the two appear very different on a molecular level.
Microwaves are effective for sterilization, which has been studied for several decades. There is controversy, however, is about whether it’s the heat they generate or if it’s something else altogether.
One scientist (Kakita 1995[20] ) was successful in demonstrating that microwaves are capable of extensively fragmenting and destroying viral DNA, something that cannot be accomplished by heating alone.
Multiple studies offer evidence that there are multiple mechanisms for breaking apart DNA without ionizing radiation, but no theory currently exists to explain this phenomenon.
Some scientists are taking advantage of the microwave effect and using microwaves in the laboratory to greatly accelerate chemical reactions, sometimes by a factor of a thousand, resulting in the completion of reactions in minutes that formerly took days or months and a lot of toxic chemicals[21] .
This newly found interest in “microwave chemistry” has spurred skeptic scientists into taking another look at what microwaves actually do and how they do it.
Sometimes common sense trumps empirical evidence.
The Penn State letter/article said it best:
“...It would seem there is reason to believe that the microwave effect does indeed exist, even if it cannot yet be adequately explained. What we know at present is somewhat limited, but there may be enough information already available to form a viable hypothesis.
The possibility that electromagnetic radiation in the non-ionizing frequency range can cause genetic damage may have profound implications on the current controversy involving EM antennae, power lines, and cell phones.”
Breaking Free of Your Microwave: A Few Basic Tips
Am I asking you to toss your microwave oven into the nearest dumpster?
Not necessarily. It can be a useful tool for cleaning. But if real estate in your kitchen is at a premium, it should probably be the first thing to go.
You really CAN survive sans microwave—people are living quite happily without one, believe it or not. You just have to make a few small lifestyle adjustments, such as:
Plan ahead. Take your dinner out of the freezer that morning or the night before so you don’t end up having to scramble to defrost a 5-pound chunk of beef two hours before dinnertime.
Make soups and stews in bulk, and then freeze them in gallon-sized freezer bags or other containers. An hour before meal time, just take one out and defrost it in a sink of water until it’s thawed enough to slip into a pot, then reheat it on the stove.
A toaster oven makes a GREAT faux-microwave for heating up leftovers! Keep it at a low temperature — like 200-250 degrees F — and gently warm a plate of food over the course of 20-30 minutes. Another great alternative is a convection oven. They can be built in or purchased as a relatively inexpensive and quick safe way to heat foods
Prepare your meals in advance so that you always have a good meal available on those days when you’re too busy or too tired to cook.
Try eating more organic raw foods. This is the best way to and improve your health over the long run."0 -
Um. really?
"There is also evidence that this same frequency of radiation causes blood sugar to spike in susceptible individuals and may actually be the cause of one type of diabetes."
So, it's not the candy bars and coke they eat/drink, it's using a microwave? Gimme a break.
Remember there are all kinds of "radiation" floating around- radio waves for example!
Good luck with your raw foods diet, though! 0 -
Wow, a lot of people seem to have strong opinions here about the microwave. I think it's a nice when you are in a hurry, but I prefer to cook my stuff on the stove or in the oven. I wouldn't waste my money on one, and I wouldn't give up space on my counter for one either. To each their own though 0
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ZOMG, microwaves come from Nazi's and Commies!! AHHH!!!
I have a microwave. I also have a cell phone and put it's harmful rays and whatnot near my brain just about everyday. And I drive a car that puts out noxious fumes. Such is the world. I will say that the article uses some instances of people not using common sense to support the idea that microwaves are bad, ie microwaving plastic. You wouldn't put plastic in the oven, it's not a good idea to put it into another heated area. Hence the way those tupperware bowls become discolored and/or distorted around the rim of the bowl where the food level rests.
I know that I want to use the microwave less, but not because I think it's evil. Thing is we live in a world of convenience. You could give this article to people that are all about convenience in their lives, they'd say "oh no, I should stop with teh microwaveness", but would continue to use it anyway.
I appreciate posting the article. Reminds me that I've been meaning to get glass dishes for leftovers. Not gonna throw out my microwave just yet though.0 -
I don't trust this article. Why aren't there a list of sources at the end. I would want to read the original findings myself before making any conclusions, but here are some thoughts i had on it:
1. Heating anything, whether it be by microwave, stove top, etc. will denature proteins and cause chemical changes.
2. If you're stupid enough to heat the baby's milk in the PLASTIC bottle and don't bother to test the temperature before you give it to the baby, you deserve a crying baby for the next three days from have a burnt mouth and tongue. (I feel sorry for the child for having such parents without common sense).
3. The Nazi's did not "discover" microwave ovens. The fact that microwaves heated food was discovered by a guy working with microwave tubes and noticed his chocolate bar melted. Though, of course it has a nice effect in the article, "if the Nazi's created it, it must be bad..."
http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/magazine/it/2005/4/2005_4_48.shtml
4. Our mother didn't trust it, so it must be bad!
5. microwaving the blood. Let's see, they discuss else where that microwaving breaks down the cell membrane, which happens in any sort of heating, just easier to control in other methods. So if you microwave the blood and all of the red blood cells pop...
All I'm saying is this is the internet. It is great for gaining information, but you always have to take it with a grain of salt. I'm not saying that everything is a lie, but here is an interesting forum topic discussing this very thing, with one post talking about the "scholarly" articles mentioned:
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=6393&page=3
^This.^
It's amazing how much new "information" gets spread around these forums just because someone drops a link. You can't believe everything you read on the internet. If you looked, you could probably find an article somewhere right now saying that microwaves are GREAT for your health.
You can;t avoid EVERYTHING that's bad for you. Jeeze.0 -
Baking Grilling or frying food can produce carcinogens.
Boiling food takes away the vitamin c content of some food items.
Microwaving can be uneven (which is why it's better not to cook raw meat in a microwave)
Heating Sugar Protein and fat together CAN produce glycotoxins which have been linked to diabetes.
You can choke on food!!! A slow and painful way to die.
These things go from 'minor' to 'major' when people have an agenda to exploit.
I don't mean to have a go at anyone, I just think scaremongering is an pretty unfair practice that goes on far too often in the area of food and diet.
I'll use my microwave like I always have, to heat up lunch at work or something at home when I haven't got time for the oven to do it's thing. But even if I do have time that dastardly conventional oven could kill me...
Oh source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooking0 -
I'm sure a fair amount of modern society and innovation is the result of an oppressive regime and/or war games.0
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i use my microwave a lot...for extra storage space when space runs out in my cupboards.0
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I merely don't use the microwave because I don't like how it changes the taste of the food your eating.
At work people think I am weird, but I will eat my food cold before heating it in the microwave. We also have a couple of toaster ovens here because there are actually quite a few people that don't like microwaves where I work.
The reason I don't always use the toaster oven at work is because people don't always clean up after themselves and I am not going to clean up messes left behind by other grown people.0 -
Sara,
I didn't think you sounded crabby at all, what you said makes sense. So much info out there saying one thing or another will kill us, whatever method kills us, old age, pop, bacon, microwaves, teflon, nitrates, cooties at the gym (thread from yesterday I saw posted ) It gets so old hearing it all. It's important to work to be healthy as we can be but I can only handle worrying about so many things that are going to kill me in one day!:laugh: Absolutely no offense intended to the OP, I simply mean all the articles out there about EVERYTHING that's trying to kill us.:smokin:
I prefer to concentrate on LIVING in the moment instead of how I'm going to die which will happen to all of us like it or not! This is the only moment we KNOW we have, the one we're in. We could eat healthy healthy healthy and still get hit by a bus in an hour.
:0
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