Hi everyone,
I took a back seat in yesterday's heated debate, but wanted to share an article on microwaves. Does anyone else besides me consciously stand as far away from their operating microwaves as humanly possible? Or push 'start' and quickly leave the room? Like cell phones, microwaves are something I've always been wary of but don't know much about. This article skims the surface scientifically (I can tell it's written for a layperson), but it still covers some pertinent concerns. If anyone has any more thorough articles on microwaves, they should post!
From your shy classmate,
Nola Weber
Microwave Dangers: Urban Myth or Frightening Reality?
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Nola, Thanks for posting this. My boyfriend's father is prone to sending poorly researched forwards through email warning the danger of _______ and micro-waving is one of the many topics discussed, haha. In my research I've never read about not standing up close to the microwave - so that was interesting.
ReplyDeleteI also like the idea of the smaller amount of time applying heat actually takes away less nutrients... I wonder if that is true? I know the idea behind steaming food rather than boiling is because there is less run-off of nutrients off of food, even though boiling takes less time. So taking less time to cook doesn't necessarily mean nutrients are better preserved? Typically when cooking raw veg in the microwave you have to use a bit of water... so is that like a steam/boil combination?? hmmm.
Also, dry-heat methods of cooking (roasting, grilling) are supposed to lock in the most nutrients of cooked food. Most dry-heat methods take a really long time at high heat to cook the food, but yet it is supposed to lock in the most nutrients, going against information in the article you posted. Both claims seem like they could be true to me on micro-waving and roasting. One of my favorite things to do in my microwave is take a potatoes and stab them a couple times, then wrap in a paper bag and microwave for 6-8 minutes. The potatoes cook using a "dry-heat" method inside of the microwave. I wonder what the nutrient levels are on this "baked potato" method compared to wet-methods, that create nutrient run-off, and traditionally dry methods, that take a lot of time ??
Also, frying is also a dry heat method... which begs the question does a steamed piece of broccoli hold less nutrients than a tempura broccoli??
Raw foodists would say cooking food at all is a bad idea because you will never reap the full benefit of your groceries.
Obviously I find this subject thought provoking. Thanks for reading...
-Stephanie