Are microwaves safe to use?

a reply to: Blue Shift

They're fine. The box shields all the nasty microwaves from getting to you.

No they dont they leak. The big industrial ones used in shops can be decteted a good way off. You can test your own putting cling film over the door and front facade. If you get any little bubbles form its leaking more than it should

purp..

originally posted by: burdman30ott6
Yeah, I don't think there's a huge risk to overall health involved in using one to heat up some water or pop some corn, but caution is best when dealing with actually cooking food in them. They absolutely zap nutrients out of the food and breakdown the cellular structure of food much moreso than real cooking does.

I'm pretty sure the intactness of the food's cellular structure is pretty much moot, given that your digestive system is about to disassemble it down to the amino acids. At any rate, the point of cooking food (one of them anyway) is TO break down the cellular structure. That's why it gets easier to eat and tastes better. Not that microwaves do a great job of making food taste really good, but that's another issue.

Another big concern: DON'T EVER COOK FOOD IN PLASTIC USING ONE!!! That includes microwave safe food wrappings and containers! Any form of plastic, no matter how "safe" they claim to be, leech carcinogens into the food during the microwaving cycles. If you must use a microwave, use a glass container.

True, but cooking in plastic with an oven does the same thing.

originally posted by: purplemer
a reply to: tastyrawmeat

Mircowave heat differs drastically from conventional heating methods. You can heat human blood up in a pan for a blood transfusion. If you put it in a microwave first and then use for a transfusion you will kill your subject.

There are microwave blood warmers on the market. You just can't pitch a bag of slushy PRBCs into a food oven and hit 'defrost'. It's not that the microwaves do anything inherently dangerous or different, it's more a matter of heating unevenly and red cells lysing at about 106F. A few hot spots and you'll have a lot of hemolysis. BTW, heat is heat. There isn't any difference between heat produced by microwaving and heat produced by holding something over a fire.

a reply to: tastyrawmeat

A friend of mine pulled one of those apart once, and used the parts inside to build a kind of laser of some sort. During testing, the item he built from the scavenged parts burned its way through a thick metal plate, and cracked a large stone clean in half after ten minutes of being focused on it.

I have no idea how he made that happen. I remember thinking at the time that I would love to see his potting shed... That was about fifteen years ago. I have no idea what he's been up to since, but I can only assume that it has to do I with ways of cracking open the surface of planetary bodies, using household appliances!

originally posted by: Razmijix
I remember an experiment someone did in the 90s where they took water that had been microwaved and water that had not and watered 2 separate plants of the same species. The plant with the microwaved water didn't do so well.

That is a golden shiny example of how NOT to do a science experiment. It wouldn't have flown as a decent grade school science fair exhibit.

And other people have done the same thing, and no difference, as you'd expect.

originally posted by: Razmijix
I remember an experiment someone did in the 90s where they took water that had been microwaved and water that had not and watered 2 separate plants of the same species. The plant with the microwaved water didn't do so well.

I'll have to find that now and read it again. I agree with everyone saying food tastes terrible after it is warmed up in a microwave.

like most myths about microwaves that isnt true.

if people took five minutes to learn how a microwave works i dont think theyd have any problem with them.

originally posted by: Skid Mark
They're no good for drying wet pets. Also, don't run it around someone that has a pacemaker.

I believe that is outdated now but do correct me if I am wrong. I have an ICD/Pacemaker in me and never have I been warned to stay away from microwaves. But and this is a big But my pacemaker is not active at this time so I very may well be incorrect.

Regards, Iwinder

a reply to: Bedlam

I believe that is exactly what it was,a grade school experiment.

Either way I still will not use one to warm up my food,especially chicken

a reply to: Rikku

I didn't say it was true. The only problem I have with them is how they make my food taste.

originally posted by: IwinderBut and this is a big But my pacemaker is not active at this time...

AHA!!!!1!! That's because you got around a microwave!!

There are a couple of reasons it's at least somewhat of a good idea.

One, magnetrons have honking big magnets in them. This presents you with the possibility (low) that your pacer can see the static magnetic field of the magnetron and decide it's a good time to go into diagnostic or "limp home" mode. This can be a problem.

Two, pacers with atrial sensing in the past could sometimes under weird conditions "see" microwave interference from a leaky oven as a trigger and either change rate or trigger the AICD function if you had one, which can just ruin your day. That doesn't happen with newer pacers, which is likely why they didn't warn you about it.

a reply to: Bedlam

There are microwave blood warmers on the market. You just can't pitch a bag of slushy PRBCs into a food oven and hit 'defrost'. It's not that the microwaves do anything inherently dangerous or different, it's more a matter of heating unevenly and red cells lysing at about 106F. A few hot spots and you'll have a lot of hemolysis. BTW, heat is heat. There isn't any difference between heat produced by microwaving and heat produced by holding something over a fire

Yes microwaves do something different to food. If in doubt have a look at some of Dr. Lita Lee work.

"Microwaving baby formulas converted certain trans-amino acids into their synthetic cis-isomers. Synthetic isomers, whether cis-amino acids or trans-fatty acids, are not biologically active. Further, one of the amino acids, L-proline, was converted to its d-isomer, which is known to be neurotoxic (poisonous to the nervous system) and nephrotoxic (poisonous to the kidneys). It's bad enough that many babies are not nursed, but now they are given fake milk (baby formula) made even more toxic via microwaving."

lancet 1989

As for heating blood in the oven..

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.

www.health-science.com...

purp.

originally posted by: Razmijix
a reply to: Bedlam

I believe that is exactly what it was,a grade school experiment.

Either way I still will not use one to warm up my food,especially chicken

Among a lot of other problems, she only had two plants.

Another one is that the photos are photoshopped, which just ruins it for me.

originally posted by: Bedlam
I'm pretty sure the intactness of the food's cellular structure is pretty much moot, given that your digestive system is about to disassemble it down to the amino acids. At any rate, the point of cooking food (one of them anyway) is TO break down the cellular structure. That's why it gets easier to eat and tastes better. Not that microwaves do a great job of making food taste really good, but that's another issue.

Yes, and no. There's an element of rate of heating and overall temperature involved which is tough to control with a microwave. You cook a roast over low heat for a long time and it becomes very tender. This is actually because the cellular structure of the roast doesn't breakdown as much, leaving more moisture and fats within each cell vs cooking it quickly under high heat or microwaving it, where in both cases, the cells quickly rupture and you're left with cellular beef jerky.

True, but cooking in plastic with an oven does the same thing.

Very true, BUT usually a plastic container cooked in an over melts, making it blatantly obvious that something has gone horribly wrong. Microwaved plastics don't necessarily do that, though chemical leeching has occurred. Something related to this which fits very well in my "Interesting how today's science can point backward in time and yell "idiots! idiots! barbaric idiots!" at yesterday's science, yet never see the potential for the science of tomorrow to do exactly the same towards the science of today" theory revolves around exactly what is really harmful vs what is openly called harmful. For decades, BPA was declared safe in plastics... now, in the last 5 years or so, science has accepted the fact that BPA leeches from plastics and causes cancer. Due to that fact (among so many others) I simply assume any chemical leeching from a plastic into our food is BAD, regardless of whether modern science supports the idea or not. I figure it is better to err on the side of caution. I highly doubt, on my deathbed, I'll suddenly be overcome with pangs of grief over never having scorched my mouth on microwaved fun packs of Kraft Mac n' Cheese.

originally posted by: purplemer

Yes microwaves do something different to food. If in doubt have a look at some of Dr. Lita Lee work.

I give Lita Lee the very same degree of credence I give Mercola.

"Microwaving baby formulas converted certain trans-amino acids into their synthetic cis-isomers."

You'd find this particularly amusing if you understood isomerization. All you need is a heat source. This same conversion happens if you dunk the bottle into very hot water to warm it. But it sounds really sciency when you phrase it the way she does, so most people don't look at it too closely.

As for heating blood in the oven..

Right! Exactly the one I was talking about. Now, leave "health science" alone and go look up the details on some reliable site. What you'll find is that Leavitt was killed by a blood clot and not the transfusion. However, the investigation showed that the only damage to the blood was hemolysis caused by uneven warming, and that it wasn't there to a great degree. You can also get the same damage by transfusing through too small an IV, for example. And they do make totally safe microwave blood warmers, they just have a lot better power controls and stirring than pitching a unit of PRBCs into the break room oven.

originally posted by: TrueBrit
a reply to: tastyrawmeat

A friend of mine pulled one of those apart once, and used the parts inside to build a kind of laser of some sort. During testing, the item he built from the scavenged parts burned its way through a thick metal plate, and cracked a large stone clean in half after ten minutes of being focused on it.

I have no idea how he made that happen. I remember thinking at the time that I would love to see his potting shed... That was about fifteen years ago. I have no idea what he's been up to since, but I can only assume that it has to do I with ways of cracking open the surface of planetary bodies, using household appliances!

It may be friday night but if I remember correctly the bit that is of use is called a magnatron, I forget the science but you can weld metal with one amongst other things.

We used microwaves for about twenty five years but gave up with them after ours caught fire one day. That was about a week after my brother had bought a one because his quit and the new one caught fire almost right away.

There are a lot of ions coming out of a Microwave, don't be standing in front of it.

We used our microwave way too much before we got rid of it. Some of the things that are made for microwaves are not good for us, like microwave popcorn. Also, don't put sliced green peppers in the microwave on high, they arc across like an arc welder.

We do not miss the microwave at all and will not be getting another one.

So are they dangerous? If they catch your house on fire they sure are.

One thing to note, sometimes it is better not to reheat foods. Cool foods stimulate stomach acid better than hot foods do and this acid is needed as part of our digestive process. The convenience of quickly heating things all the time can cause digestive issues. If you want energy to do things, eat a cold lunch. If you want to sit at a desk or in a classroom, a hot lunch works better.

a reply to: Bedlam

Lita Lee report was in the lancet the one of the world's oldest and best known general medical journals. But no thats not good enough for you..?

However, the investigation showed that the only damage to the blood was hemolysis caused by uneven warming,

If it is capable of changing the structure of blood because of uneven warming then it will do the same to food. Look to me like you are debating for the same side as me..

Purp..

originally posted by: burdman30ott6
...and you're left with cellular beef jerky.

I don't claim that microwaves make tasty food. I only use the thing to reheat pizza and coffee, for the most part. They make excellent hot water for tea. I occasionally use one to heat a brownie or a piece of apple pie to the point it makes a nice contrast to a small scoop of ice cream. But I can't recall the last thing I cooked in one, because the food cooks unevenly and it's soggy. The uneven heating thing is the crux of most actually valid complaints against microwaves, from purp's isomerization to the loss of vitamins. None of it is microwave specific, just an effect of spotty heating.

Very true, BUT usually a plastic container cooked in an over melts, making it blatantly obvious that something has gone horribly wrong.

Cooking in plastic at all is an awful thing. Some plastics are ok for this, supposedly. My favorite is when someone reheats spaghetti (for some reason this seems to be the worst) in plastic tupperware. I show them the pits around the edge of the sauce and say "wonder where THAT plastic went" and they usually don't do it again.

I highly doubt, on my deathbed, I'll suddenly be overcome with pangs of grief over never having scorched my mouth on microwaved fun packs of Kraft Mac n' Cheese.

You should, on the other hand, have them over never having had my home made version, which doesn't involve a microwave.

a reply to: Bedlam

That is a golden shiny example of how NOT to do a science experiment. It wouldn't have flown as a decent grade school science fair exhibit.

And other people have done the same thing, and no difference, as you'd expect.

The reason that the microwaved water kills plants is because it contains no oxygen. So please stop talking down to peeps like you know everything..

Evidently i have seen you be wrong a few times in this thread now..

originally posted by: rickymouse
We used microwaves for about twenty five years but gave up with them after ours caught fire one day. That was about a week after my brother had bought a one because his quit and the new one caught fire almost right away.

They tend to fail in a spectacular and smelly fashion.

There are a lot of ions coming out of a Microwave, don't be standing in front of it.

On the other hand, no. Microwaves are non-ionizing. The only ions you'll get from one would be if you had badly insulated bits around the high voltage section.