Issues with Microwaves page 2

[Ayla2010]

We haven't had one in nearly 2 years. I never really liked them, and rarely used it.

[Ghâshûl]

I use them regularly, to re-heat food, for instance.

[Damiana]

I use it to quickly steam vegetables and to great water for my tea. It's a heater, it uses energy to heat up water molecules, there's no radiation involved. Don't overheat shit and everything will be fine. Use glass when reheating. Geez.

[zoebird]

we haven't used one since 2001 or some such. Back then, the thing started sparking purple lightening bolts, and so we took it to the recycling center the next day. DH had used it a fair bit before then, but adapted. We dont' have one at home, but there is one at the office; DH uses it but I do not. It's like it's against my religion or something.

Anyway, I dont' know anything about how ok or not ok it is, but my preference is to not use one, so I don't.

[Crabbcakes]

We use one all the time. It is just another way of getting food hot, and I think the article the OP originally cited is blatantly alarmist. We have a special-needs preteen in the house, and while she is absolutely not safe around hot cooktops (hot plates, electric cooktops, and open flames on gas stoves) or in hot ovens, she can mostly manage herself around a microwave, and it is worth it to her to have that one more piece of independence in an otherwise very dependent life.

Having said that, though, we use it for warming frozen plain vegetables, cooking a potato, or reheating bowl of something homemade. Occasionally the other kids will soften stuff like hard butter or cream cheese in preparation for some other cooking project if they forgot to set it out sufficiently beforehand. We have enough special diets in this family that bringing frozen micro meals and snacks into the house is simply not an option, so no danger to us there from the mega-agro-"food" companies.

I support not having one for slow-food reasons, or because your cooking style doesn't ever use one, but to say that the nuke kills food any more than any other style of cooking/heating food is bunk.

[Graycat]

Since I refuse to kindle fire in my fire pit outside for every little mundane task, such as re-heating my lunch for instance, I get to use mine a lot.
I'm sure there are many other articles all over the inter-space warning us how dangerous microwaves are and carcinogenic and such, I simply decide to ignore that and go on with my life instead. Can't worry about everything all the time.

[specsAreGrok]

I grew up using a microwave for about everything. I recall the first time I turned one on when the wifey moved in -- she ran out of the house.....that was the end of that. Haven't had a microwave in my house for about 8 years or so now. Haven't really ever had cause to miss it either. Dunno about health-benefits of not using it, just haven't found any need for it.

[eKatherine]

We use one all the time. It is just another way of getting food hot, and I think the article the OP originally cited is blatantly alarmist.

Having said that, though, we use it for warming frozen plain vegetables, cooking a potato, or reheating bowl of something homemade. Occasionally the other kids will soften stuff like hard butter or cream cheese in preparation for some other cooking project if they forgot to set it out sufficiently beforehand. We have enough special diets in this family that bringing frozen micro meals and snacks into the house is simply not an option, so no danger to us there from the mega-agro-"food" companies.

I support not having one for slow-food reasons, or because your cooking style doesn't ever use one, but to say that the nuke kills food any more than any other style of cooking/heating food is bunk.

I use mine for all these reasons. I also brew tea from leaves once a day and keep it in a pitcher, simply reheating it. What a waste of time it would be brewing fresh tea whenever I wanted a cup.

[Paleobird]

My house has been microwave free for about 3 years now. I personally think they poison our food and help kill us slowly.

But it won't hurt you at all if you keep your tinfoil hat properly polished.

Cooking in itself destroys nutrients. The upside is that increases the bio availability of others, and you get to eat cooked food.

Exactly.

Another way of describing increased movement of molecules is heat.
I fail to see how this is any differenet for any other method of heating food, and I didn't see anything in that artical that addressed that issue.

Right, any method of heating causes yer molecules to get all exited.

We use one all the time. It is just another way of getting food hot, and I think the article the OP originally cited is blatantly alarmist. to say that the nuke kills food any more than any other style of cooking/heating food is bunk.

But yet this topic keeps turning up like the proverbial bad penny.

[CiKi90]

I was just sharing my thoughts on microwaves. I'm not trying to get y'all to toss your microwave ovens. I'm simply saying that I am definitely not going to put my top quality produce into something that I believe destroys the nutrients. I also believe that the convenience of it has added to the obesity epidemic just because of the availability of fast, hot, chemically engineered calorie bombs (tv dinners, snacks, etc.)
While some of you feel that this method of cooking is perfectly fine, I would much rather steer clear of any excess radiation if I can avoid it. I know, it's everywhere, but at least I'm not adding to it by using a microwave.

However, if it works for you, Im glad that you have no qualms with it and enjoy it.