Valid reasons for not using a microwave!

When the microwave was first introduced to society it was a marvel.  Something that would change the way a kitchen was used.  Change the way grocery manufactures made processed food etc.  I would have to say it has even added it’s fair share to the obesity epidemic in such a way that people eat way too much processed junk that can be thrown in the microwave and eaten out of the plastic wrapper it comes in……YUKK!   Convenient but deadly.  Hmmmmm. There are many reasons why I would avoid using a microwave.  Granted I used one years ago until I came across the many debates about microwave cooking.  The dangers of microwave cooking are pretty rock solid.  Now my microwave oven is just a piece of equipment in my kitchen that takes up space and flashes the time of day on it’s digital clock.  The only reason there is a microwave oven in my kitchen is for the next homeowner who will inhabit this space one day. The negatives to microwave use are pretty well rock solid. Did you know that even short microwave cooking times for reheating foods, heating frozen or raw veggies can turn their plant alkaloids into carcinogenic matter unfit for human consumption.  Particularly root veggies. Being near a microwave while it is running is dangerous.  It gives off radiation and high levels of electromagnetic emissions. Studies show that mom’s milk heated in a microwave for baby is depleted of vitamins and some of the amino acids of value are made inactive.  These damaged amino acids become poison to the nervous system and kidneys.  Do you really want to heat up that bottle in the microwave? When you zap meat in the microwave it causes the formation of d-Nitrosodienthanolamines, a dangerous carcinogen. Microwaving in general changes the molecular structure of most foods and creates carcinogens. Microwaving in anything but glass is extremely toxic.  Plastic and food wrappings are very toxic when used in the microwave.  You will note that many of the convenience foods made for microwaving are wrapped in plastic or other similar materials which are not safe for human exposure. A study revealed that if you fed a house plant water that had previously been microwaved and cooled to room temperature the plant would die.  Feed a house plant water that had been previously boiled on the stove and cooled to room temperature and the plant would flourish.  What does that tell you about how the structure of water changes in a microwave. I don’t know about you but I don’t really want to be nourishing myself or my family with food that is denatured and turned into carcinogens from a microwave.  Let’s get back to conventional ways in the kitchen.   And aside from all of that here is a story for you. A 26-year old man decided to have a cup of instant coffee. He took a cup of water and put it in the microwave to heat it up (something that he had done numerous times before). I am not sure how long he set the timer for, but he wanted to bring the water to a boil.  When the timer shut the oven off, he removed the cup from the oven. As he looked into the cup, he noted that the water was not boiling but was hot, then suddenly the water in the cup ‘blew up in his face. All the water had flown up into his face due to the build-up of energy. His whole face became blistered and he sustained 1st and 2nd degree burns which scarred.  He also may have lost partial sight in his left eye. While at the hospital, the doctor who was attending to him stated that this is a fairly common occurrence. Water (alone) should never be heated in a microwave oven. If water is heated in this manner, something should be placed in the cup to diffuse the energy such as a wooden stir stick, tea bag, etc, (nothing metal). What happens is that the water heats faster than the vapour bubbles can form. If the cup is very new, then it is unlikely to have small surface scratches inside it that provide a place for the bubbles to form. As the bubbles cannot form and release some of the heat that has built up, the liquid does not boil, and the liquid continues to heat up well past its boiling point.  What then usually happens is that the liquid is bumped or jarred, which is just enough of a shock to cause the bubbles to rapidly form and expel the hot liquid. The rapid formation of bubbles is also why a carbonated beverage bubbles up after opening, especially if it has been shaken.  DANGEROUS STUFF. My suggestion is to go back to the basics of cooking.  Use your coffee maker, conventional oven and your stove top.  Cook food from scratch and avoid all of those toxic wrappers and processed foods that come in them.  Health or convenience…..I take health, hands down