No More Nukes! The Dangers of Microwaving
Posted by ahewcn on May 13, 2009
Microwaving has been a widely accepted method of cooking and heating meals in a flash, but few of us stop to think how ‘nuking’ affects what has often started out as the nutritious foods that we strive to incorporate into our diets.
Nearly two decades ago, a German study showed that microwaving food is indeed a major cause of the dramatic increases in cancer experienced in the industrialized world. Microwaving heats food from the inside out, whereas traditional cooking methods heat food from the outside in. The researchers found that this change in heating technique creates unique life forms called radiolytic compounds. Radiolytic compounds do not exist in nature. Furthermore, these compounds dramatically and progressively reduce red and white blood cell counts.
The lowered red blood cell count leads to anemia. Fewer white blood cells decrease immune system activity. Both conditions allow disease to invade the body without a fight. So while some people may feel that they are healthy because they never get sick, it is likely that they never get sick because their bodies are not strong enough to mount a defense against invading organisms.
Microwaved food also increases levels of LDL (the so-called “bad” cholesterol carrier) while decreasing the “good” HDL cholesterol carriers.*
This study didn’t even look at the fact that food microwaved in plastic contains 10,000 times more carcinogens than the FDA officially allows! It does, however, support the more current research showing the dangers of feeding babies microwaved formula or breast milk.
So what should you do, if you don’t have a lot of time to prepare nutritious meals all the time?
* Thermoses are a great blast from the past that is coming back into fashion. At about $20 a pop, they pay for themselves in just a few weeks. I often heat up leftovers from dinner in a small pot or the convection oven while I’m having breakfast. Then I pack the thermos and go.
* Convection or toaster ovens are a necessity to any healthy kitchen or office space. One can be purchased for as little as $30 new, less at a garage sale. You may need to invest in a few small Corningware-type dishes to heat up your meals, but they are well worth the $4 investment.
* Picnic! Once again, do as the French. Prepare an easy “charcuterie” plate: little pickles, (nitrate-free) cold cuts, pâtés, raw milk cheeses, hard-boiled eggs, plain full-fat yogurt, fresh fruit, olives and a cold potato salad. These are all excellent, nourishing foods that barely need any prep and easily make a meal in themselves.
Besides the health advantages for you and your family, eating foods that are naturally prepared allows you to truly enjoy the wonderful flavors you may not even have realized were there. You’ll be astonished at how different it is! And like my husband, you just may find yourself the envy of your office!
*This is yet another fact that should make us rethink the cholesterol theory which blames animal foods for rising cholesterol rates. But more about that in another post.
Source:
VALENTINE, TOM, Microwave Tragedy, Acres USA, 1994.
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