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Mahk
Jun 11th, 2007, 04:49 AM
Actually, there's many reports that microwaves are a very healthy way to cook vegetables without losing vitamins as opposed to boiling and compared to an electric or gas oven they're very efficient too.

Agreed. All cooking compromises the vitamin content, I suppose, but Consumer Reports magazine has several level headed links here (http://blogs.consumerreports.org/safety/2006/10/are_microwave_o.html) and one mentions that unlike boiling the nutrients out into the water, with a microwave the vitamins have nowhere to go so more are retained in the food and also benefits because you are "cooking them out" for a shorter period of time with a microwave oven. Click on "microwave safety quiz" (http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/appliances/news/september-2006/microwave-safety-9-06/overview/0609_microwave-safety_ov.htm) and read the answer question #5, "True or false, microwave ovens suck the nutrients out of food?"

Kiran
Jun 11th, 2007, 09:29 PM
Here is a publication that explains how microwave ovens can be harmful. There are plenty of references made to authentic research.

Click here to read the full paper. (http://ecclesia.org/forum/uploads/bondservant/microwaveP.pdf)

Edit: I just realised that this is the article which Cumin mentioned in his post!
.

drunkenunicorn
Jun 12th, 2007, 07:18 AM
RE: Sorry but this is an urban legend.
http://www.snopes.com/science/microwave/plants.asp

that website has some very good points. I did find one false statement however:

the website claimed "that there have been some cases in which the use of microwave-heated blood in medical procedures has been cited as causing serious problems, but not because microwave heating "corrupts the DNA." Rather, conventional microwave ovens can heat blood too quickly and/or too unevenly.."

the falsehood in this statement is the part where the website claims that microwaving blood does not corrupt the DNA. that is completely untrue. how do i know that? because i work in a Genomics Analysis Laboratory. [its a PCR (Polymerase chain reaction) production lab]. DNA is extremely unstable. as soon as its exposed to any environment outside of the cell, it denatures, or 'corrupts'. it unwravels and breaks apart. cell membranes are also sensitive, in that, when you heat a cell beyond body (or plant) temperature the cell's membrane breaks open. if you microwave blood, you are forcing that delicate cell membrane open releasing all the cell's organelles including the unprotected 'corrupt' dna fragments.

I am skeptical of any source of information that states 'facts' that i know aren't true. which isn't to claim i know the true answer to the microwaved water experiment... i have not personally done the experiment (or taken that class), but too many variables in an experiment dont make an urban legend.

i'm a little lazy. and i threw away my microwave. will somebody else do this experiment in their own kitchen and report back?

Mahk
Jun 12th, 2007, 05:35 PM
I have no doubt that microwaves destroy/corrupt DNA and explode blood cells, but I also have no doubt that DNA and blood cells would equally be destroyed if you held a test-tube of blood over a Bunsen burner's flame or poured the blood on to a red, hot frying pan on the stove. The exact same mechanism is causing the destruction: heat! Since a microwave's heat is "invisible", people incorrectly attribute its destruction of living tissue to "magical, sinister, invisible radiation". What that article was trying to point out, in my opinion, is that due to the nature of how microwave ovens notoriously heat unevenly, they aren't a safe way to "just warm it up a little, I won't boil it, I promise". This exact same danger is why one should never "just warm up" a baby's bottle in a microwave:

And because of the risk of scalding burns, remember to not use a microwave to warm your baby's bottles of formula. A microwave heats things unevenly and can lead to super heated pockets of formula in the bottle which can scald your baby's mouth. Although many parents do use a microwave to heat bottles, then vigorously shake the bottle and test the formula before giving it to their baby, it still isn't a safe practice.

Source of quote here. (http://pediatrics.about.com/od/weeklyquestion/a/04_warming_btls.htm)

frank language
Jun 14th, 2007, 11:04 PM
It seems that a lot of Amy's products are suitable only for lacto-vegitarians. Though her black bean burrito is vegan and good. I did purchase her cheese-less frozen pizza, but I haven't had it yet.
She has a rice-crust spinach pizza with casein-free soy cheeze, and it's very good; I thought the crust was unconventional but great.

And I cooked it in a conventional oven--never a microwave; them is the devil's work!

As soon as I read--on the internet, and if you read it on the internet, it must be true--that microwave ovens destroy nutrients, I decided to stop using them. No excuses, I just never use it anymore. If it weren't for my carnitarian roommate who uses it all the time, I'd throw it out.

Mahk
Jun 15th, 2007, 01:52 AM
What's "carnitarian" mean? :confused:

frank language
Jun 15th, 2007, 02:38 AM
What's "carnitarian" mean? :confused:

Well, figure "vegetarian" is vegetable-eater, isn't a "carnitarian" a meat-eater?

(Same way as "carnival" is "saying goodbye to meat"--think Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday.)

Mahk
Jun 15th, 2007, 03:49 AM
Carnivores eat meat. A "carnitarian" is perhaps a person who eats people who celebrate at carnival or eats carnies ("Circus folk. Nomads, you know. Smell like cabbage. Small hands." - Austin Danger Powers)! :eek: :p

frank language
Jun 15th, 2007, 04:35 AM
In the Urban Dictionary, there's a definition for meatarian (http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=meatarian&defid=930627); "The exact opposite of vegetarian."

Mahk
Jun 29th, 2007, 05:55 AM
I thought it was interesting that at least in the study mentioned here (http://www.pritikin.com/askexperts/002.shtml), the vegetables "cooked in the microwave" were also being boiled in over a 1/2 a cup of water. We all know boiling leaches the nutrients out into the water.

Dr Phibes
Jul 7th, 2007, 04:48 PM
I have never used a microwave in my life, although I can't vouch for food cooked for me by others. A good resource for info on microwave dangers is: http://www.mercola.com/article/microwave/hazards.htm (http://www.mercola.com/article/microwave/hazards.htm)

Regards
Phibes

Risker
Jul 7th, 2007, 06:08 PM
Somebody posted this link before, apparently the mercola guy that writes it is far from the most reliable source.

There's a thread about his work here - http://www.veganforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3136&highlight=mercola

Dr Phibes
Jul 7th, 2007, 06:24 PM
Thanks Risker

The Mercola article on the danger of microwaves appears consistent with other articles on the subject and is written in an easy to understand style, which is why I chose it. There are hundreds of thousands of other such articles on the internet if folk on VF don't trust Mercola...

Regards
Phibes

frank language
Jul 8th, 2007, 05:39 AM
There are hundreds of thousands of other such articles on the internet if folk on VF don't trust Mercola...

And you know if you read it on the internet, it must be true!

Korn
Jul 8th, 2007, 09:40 AM
Somebody posted this link before, apparently the mercola guy that writes it is far from the most reliable source.

There's a thread about his work here - http://www.veganforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3136&highlight=mercola

Not only is that site not a reliable source (in that they're falsely claiming things to be scientific truths without backing them up with documentation), it's also a clear anti-vegan site - and they now also seem to have employed spammers.... we've seen a number of posts the last couple of days a la 'Don't you just love www.mercola.com for healthy tips?' written by a new member (non-approved member, so the posts never made it to the forum) who is only posting about that mercola-site... The spam started in this thread two days ago, by posting a link to mercola as a reliable source for info on microwave ovens.

Dr Phibes
Jul 8th, 2007, 02:32 PM
So, as I see it - none of you are saying that Mercola's assertion that microwaves are dangerous is incorrect?!? Or are you saying that microwaves are safe? And if so, on what basis do you make such claims?

Korn
Jul 8th, 2007, 06:22 PM
I don't think anyone has commented Mercola's viewpoints on microwaves... As you can see from earlier posts, lots of them are very critical about using microwave ovens.

Risker
Jul 8th, 2007, 06:29 PM
Safe in what way? A gas or electric oven can burn down your house, cause explosions, burn your food to a crisp making it carcinogenic, destroy vitamins in food, burn you...

Mahk
Jul 8th, 2007, 10:48 PM
Risker, you're 100% correct.

There is no medical body, school, government, health organization, or consumer advocacy/protection group which advises against the use of modern day microwave ovens or foods cooked in them. But then again, as that Dr. Mercola article points out, they all could be manipulated into suppressing the truth by sinister brain-wave transmissions originating from a secret transmitter located on the dark side of the moon. :rolleyes: All the websites that claim microwave ovens pose health risks don't back their claims with science, they use Dr. Mercola's article, instead.

[edit: This was written sarcastically before I gained the information I've posted below.]

Mahk
Jul 9th, 2007, 01:40 AM
OMG! :eek: I was digging around on the web trying to find out more about the two actual authors of Dr. Mercola's anti-microwave article, Anthony Wayne and Lawrence Newell. This anti-microwave article they wrote seems to be reprinted all over the place but I couldn't find anything on the actual authors or their background. Then I hit the mother lode. The article was originally entitled, "Public Awareness Bulletin #1", or PAB1 for short. David Vemon, writing for The Skeptic, had been on the exact same mission as me back in 2003. What he found out about the questionable "science" behind this article isn't nearly as interesting as the evil politics, hate, and conspiracy theories of the original backers. It's quite shocking:

http://www.skeptics.com.au/journal/2003/2_microwaves.pdf

emendblu
Aug 21st, 2007, 06:53 PM
i stopped eating anything cooked in a microwave about a month and a half ago. its tough since the microwave was so convenient but i am fine with doing a little bit more work

Vegan_baby
Aug 22nd, 2007, 04:25 AM
I bought a huge micro-convection oven and love it. I may get less vitamins from the food I cook in it but I also don't sit around eating chips and drinking beer all day like many men. I'll stick with my microwave. Without it I would eat almost no veggies and thats not any better.

If you eat a proper balanced diet then you are at no risk from using your microwave.

My father hated microwaves and would never eat a single thing out of one claiming it was horrible for his health. In the meantime he drank and smoked himself to his grave at 50 years old.....

Lets keep our heads...

steven1222
Aug 22nd, 2007, 05:27 PM
The authors of studies and articles showing that microwave ovens are harmful fall into two main categories: propagandists and quack doctors. There is no reliable evidence to support the conclusion that using microwaves to heat food is dangerous. Any effects on nutrients that are caused by microwaves are caused to a lesser or greater extent by other forms of cooking, and I think it is too restrictive to eat only raw food. I do not cook with a microwave oven frequently, but when I want to buy frozen processed foods and heat them in a microwave oven, I see nothing wrong with doing so.

Cup'O'Tea
Aug 24th, 2007, 07:36 PM
I do, but not often. I used to microwave everything - back when I was a greasy meat-eater.
Now I use the microwave for some veggie 'meats' (which I'm trying to stop eating - I'll eat up what I have left, and then not buy anymore), heating Uncle Ben's Bistro Rice (when I'm too lazy to make real rice), heating up frozen veggies, and that's about it. I'll probably start boiling my veggies instead.

Mahk
Aug 24th, 2007, 10:22 PM
Actually boiling your vegetables tends to leech out the nutrients even more than than a microwave (unless you consume the water too). At least that's what I've heard. Try steaming instead. It's quicker than boiling any way because you don't have to wait for an entire pot of water to come to a boil, only a half inch instead.

I like that combo micro/convection oven Vegan Baby above mentioned. I sort of do that myself by first microwaving a food and then putting it in my toaster oven for a crispy coating. Quite good for things like frozen waffles (Trader Joes Banana are tops) and "baked" potatoes.