dangers of microwave use explained

[karika]

I read a piece about how the microwave works and what it does to the foods a few months ago and stopped using my microwave. This article is easier to read. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mer..._b_684662.html

The article I read months ago is here. http://www.beyondhealth.com/site/art...wavedFoods.pdf

I have been using a small pan on the stovetop for reheating, or my counter oven is great for it. The main thing that was hard to overcome was dd1 not understanding that she had to wait for her food to be reheated now. She got used to it though.

[mamadelbosque]

I don't use it everyday but I'm not about to get rid of it. I'm just not prepared to dirty half a dozen items to warm up spaghetti vs the (glass!) container its already in. I'm just not. And I just don't believe that microwaves are half as dagnerous as mercola & co would like us to think. I just don't buy it. The *point* of cooking food is to change the molecular structure of food. THATS THE POINT!! Thats the whole freaking point of cooking!!!

[MountainMamaGC]

Ours broke and I am ok with not buying another one. We always find a way to heat our food.

The bonus is that food taste better reheated in the toaster oven or stove. Esp pizza.

[karika]

Originally Posted by mamadelbosque

I'm just not prepared to dirty half a dozen items to warm up spaghetti vs the (glass!) container its already in. I'm just not. And I just don't believe that microwaves are half as dagnerous as mercola & co would like us to think. I just don't buy it. The *point* of cooking food is to change the molecular structure of food. THATS THE POINT!! Thats the whole freaking point of cooking!!!

The article quotes a few studies that conclude the microwave obliterated the healthy parts to the food. For instance,
"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."

and this from Dr Weil "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."


Microwaving alters the food (proteins, grains, milk) into carcinogens and other cancer causing agents more than one study found. I would quote more, but I think my quote quota is used up here...

I cook in corning ware vessels or the like, then they can go from oven (counter oven) to fridge to oven, no extra dishes needed. I even eat from the corning ware most of the time... or if I am heating a small amount like for the child, I put a bit in a pan on the stove, then wipe it clean when done... easy shmeezy...

At the very least, I hope anyone reading this thread learns that microwaving their breastmilk is not good for the baby, not because of burning only, but because it kills off many of the good things in the breastmilk. This has been taught for years already, that microwaving breastmilk kills much of its magic, doesn't it stand to reason it would do the same to other foods?

[karika]

Originally Posted by Lydiah

Ours broke and I am ok with not buying another one. We always find a way to heat our food.

The bonus is that food taste better reheated in the toaster oven or stove. Esp pizza.

I agree! I used a micro for reheating everything in the past and greatly disliked leftovers... now I know why. The stuff I reheat now is as good as when I made it, or in the case of oatmeal- better on reheat...

[Otto]

Biophotons contain important bio-information and are very important to many vital processes in your body.... You gain biophotons by eating foods rich in them....

He's really pulling out all the stops with this one, although recycling the E-mail rumor about the miraculous low-temperature home synthesis of PCDDs was pretty good.

[Jayray]

"Biophotons??" I'm sorry, this really sounds like pseudoscience to me. Some of the other ways he describes molecules being "deformed" are not really accurate--or at least there's nothing wrong with it. I'm a chemist and molecules can "deform" with no effect on their properties.

I agree that microwaving changes the properties of food and some nutrients in the food--as does all cooking--but I don't think it's "dangerous."

Yes, you shouldn't microwave in plastic. I also don't bake in plastic or heat things on the stovetop in plastic.

[koru]

Originally Posted by mamadelbosque

I don't use it everyday but I'm not about to get rid of it. I'm just not prepared to dirty half a dozen items to warm up spaghetti vs the (glass!) container its already in.

Ditto! I try not to use it but I also try not to eat processed foods, sugar, stay up too late, get stressed out, drink too much ETOH, etc, etc. But life happens & sometimes the micro is just what I need to get the kids fed & out of the house.

From everything I've read, I do believe the micro zaps nutrients but I'm not convinced it's altering my food into something carcinogenic. I admit that I haven't read that much, though.

[TCMoulton]

Originally Posted by karika

At the very least, I hope anyone reading this thread learns that microwaving their breastmilk is not good for the baby, not because of burning only, but because it kills off many of the good things in the breastmilk. This has been taught for years already, that microwaving breastmilk kills much of its magic, doesn't it stand to reason it would do the same to other foods?

Actually I thought that the main reason that people were told NOT to heat any baby food in a microwave was because it could cause uneven heating that could potentially burn the baby if a bottle was not thoroughly shaken and tested.

[mamadelbosque]

Its true that microwaving bm 'kills' some of the good stuff in bm... but so does heating it up in other ways! Just as heating raw milk in a microwave would 'kill' some of the good stuff, but then again so would heating it on the stove!!! Obviously warming food kills bacteria - thats (at least with certain foods, meat for example!) kinda the point. We heat foods up, kill the bacteria in them - the good along with the bad - and then eat it more safely. Other advantages to heating food (in a microwave or on the stovetop or int he oven) include breaking down the molucules so that they are more easily digested. Yes, its 'altering the molecular structure of food' - true! But uh, thats the point. It makes it more easily digestable/bio-available. THATS THE POINT OF COOKING!

[CherryBomb]

Originally Posted by mamadelbosque

I don't use it everyday but I'm not about to get rid of it. I'm just not prepared to dirty half a dozen items to warm up spaghetti vs the (glass!) container its already in. I'm just not. And I just don't believe that microwaves are half as dagnerous as mercola & co would like us to think. I just don't buy it. The *point* of cooking food is to change the molecular structure of food. THATS THE POINT!! Thats the whole freaking point of cooking!!!

(Bolding mine!) x 1000

[catnip]

I got rid of my microwave for a couple of years because it helped me break my processed/pacakged food habits. Now it lives in the guest room with a mini-fridge, and I use it occasionally to reheat coffee or leftovers.