ARE THERE HEALTH CONCERNS WITH MICROWAVE OVEN USE?

Microwave ovens have been used in US homes for more than forty years. As long as the manufacturer’s procedures are followed, the FDA guidelines state that these are safe.

The War Department of the United States had detailed research on microwave ovens years before they were made available to the public. At the end of the second World War, this research was acquired. In search of an efficient way to provide meals to troops invading Russia, the Nazis had developed the first microwave ovens. The War Department of the United States held the Germans’ documented research for later study.

The Russians also acquired some of the German microwave ovens for biological testing. As a result of that testing, the Soviets issued international warnings about the health and environmental hazards of using microwave ovens and outlawed their use in Russia. Strict environmental limits were urged by Eastern European scientists who agreed with the Russian findings.

Thousands of workers that had been exposed to microwaves during the development of radar in the 1950s were tested by the Russians. It was determined that just being exposed to the energy field was enough to create health difficulties. The findings of the Russian scientists led to industry guidelines that limited exposure for industry workers to 10 microwatts and for civilians to 1 microwatt.

Adrenal exhaustion, anxiety, cancer, cataracts, dizziness, eye pain, hair loss, headaches, high blood pressure, inability to concentrate, irritability, ischemic heart disease, memory loss, nervous tension, an increased incidence of appendicitis, reproductive problems, sleeplessness, stomach pain, and chronic stress were found to be symptoms of microwave sickness experienced by those exposed to microwave radiation. Such symptoms would suggest inflammatory issues.

Russian teams of forensic scientists also studied the effects of microwave cooking on foods and the effect those foods had on people that ate them. Their findings were that ALL foods cooked in microwave ovens were damaged molecularly. Meats had destroyed and destabilized proteins and contained cancer-causing agents. Fruits and vegetables (chiefly root vegetables) cooked in a microwave formed free radicals. The basic substances found in fruits and vegetables had lowered levels of metabolic activity which interfered with digestibility and nutrient absorption. Subjects that ingested these items experienced digestive disorders caused by the inconsistent catabolism of micro-waved foods. This included an elevated number of intestinal cancers and cellular degeneration of peripheral tissues. Testing confirmed changes in the immune system and blood. Cancer cells were found elevated in the blood and were accompanied by malfunctions of the Lymphatic system which caused degeneration of the immune system.

Many US cooks decried the use of microwave ovens when first introduced. There were hot debates on whether tampering with the molecules in foods would make them unsafe for consumption. The results of the Russian research raised concerns that were shared by other countries which also banned microwave ovens. In the United States, citizens were assured that microwave ovens were safe for food preparation.

Perestroika arrived in 1987 and Russia removed the restrictions on microwave ovens.

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Dr. Mark Vinick explains how microwaves cook violently,
changing and damaging foods and the nutrients they provide.

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By 1991, the assurances of safety had reached the surgical staff of Hillcrest Medical Center located in Tulsa, OK. A successful hip replacement procedure had been performed on Norma Levitt, and she was still in the operating room. Because the blood warming device was not working that day, a unit of her own blood was warmed by placing it into a microwave oven located in the employee lounge. Within minutes of receiving this blood, a blood clot killed Norma. The hospital defended its actions saying that Norma’s death had nothing to do with her micro-waved blood; the FDA published warnings against use of a microwave oven when warming blood products.

Before Norma’s demise, scientific studies were being conducted by Dr. Hans Ulrich Hertel on the effects of micro-waved foods on humans. People that ate foods on an empty stomach submitted blood samples before and after eating. Comparisons were made between the blood of persons that ate raw foods, foods cooked conventionally and micro-waved foods as well as to the samples taken before eating. There were considerable variances in the blood samples of the volunteers that ate micro-waved foods. Dr. Hertel’s findings showed that eating micro-waved foods generated changes in the blood that mirrored the cancer’s pathology.

It was determined by Dr. Hertel that definite risks to health were associated with foods prepared using a microwave oven. He further stated that eating foods subjected to microwave cooking would have cancerous effects on human blood. In December of 1991, the Journal Franz Webber published his findings along with an article about Dr. Hertel.

Trade laws and the Swiss court were used by manufacturers of microwave ovens to silence Dr. Hertel, threatening him with personal ruin if he disclosed his findings. Dr. Hertel was prohibited from further publication of his studies and found guilty of “interfering with commerce” in March of 1993. This judgment was overturned August 25, 1998 in Strasbourg, Austria. The Swiss government was ordered to compensate Dr. Hertel.

Regulatory agencies, retailers and manufacturers insist that these appliances pose no health risks. These assurances however, are contradictory to the findings of published studies that find otherwise. It is worth it to take the time to judge not only how best our foods should be farmed and collected, but how those foods should best be readied to grace our table.

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ALICE WATERS is interviewed for a 60 Minutes segment by Leslie Stahl.
In the clip below, Leslie asks, "Where’s your microwave?"
Alice: "I don't have a microwave."
Leslie: "How do you live without a microwave?!"
Alice: "I don’t know how you'd consider to live WITH one."