2004/02/20 16:56
The Chase Team/Investigation Report
According to one statistic, the microwave oven penetration rate in Taiwan is about 40%, which simply translates to 4 out of every 10 households having a microwave oven. If someone said to these families, "Don't use microwave ovens, they may cause cancer. It would make many people panic, wouldn't it? In fact, this is true. Recently, an email saying that microwave ovens do more harm than good has been circulating on the Internet, and some people have written to us to ask for help, "My dad won't let me use it anymore, what should I do? What's the point of this letter?
>> Microwave ovens do more harm than good?
The letter, which has been circulating on the Internet, is from Raymond Francis, who founded Beyond Health, a company that sells health products, and wrote a book called NEVER BE SICK AGAIN. The article, which is circulating on the Net, is on his company's Web site at www.beyondhealth.com就可以找到, but look for it to be registered first.
The translation of the article appeared in the mainland's China Youth Daily on Sept. 17, 2003, and because it was a print media with a large readership, it really did generate a lot of discussion after it was published, and some people on the Internet immediately questioned the article, starting with the identity of the author, who was missing a sentence from the translation that was forwarded to him on the Internet: "Raymonde is a scientist at the University of Massachusetts," he said.
Raymonde is an M.I.T.-trained scientist and an internationally recognized leader in the emerging field of optimal health maintenance.
Raymonde is an M.I.T.-trained scientist and an internationally recognized leader in the emerging field of optimal health maintenance.
In another interview with him, he describes himself as a chemist with a master`s degree from MIT. (See: Neela Sakaria speaks with Raymond Francis)
From these sources, the translation to Massachusetts scientist seems imprecise, but not a big deal. Let's move on to the main text and analyze it.
To analyze this article, Vale was forced to read a lot of English. In general, Raymond Francis's article is not so much an original idea as it is a collection of articles about the harmful effects of microwave ovens. Many of the arguments in the article have been discussed by others a long time ago, however, there has been a lack of relevant arguments. Another version of the article signed by Dr. Hong Shanben was forwarded to us on the Internet, which is actually also this kind of large collection of articles, but it is just a re-processing of the material that has been circulated on the Internet, so we will not analyze it separately. Sorting out these repetitively relayed microwave harmful theories, the main problems are as follows, let's analyze them one by one.
1. How microwaves are generated in microwave ovens
The article says, "There is a major difference between the microwaves generated by the sun and those generated by microwave ovens. The difference is that microwave ovens use alternating current to generate microwaves." We found a more "detailed" explanation of how microwaves are generated. "We found a more "detailed" statement: "The sun's waves are direct current (DC), which cannot generate frictional heat, and have a wide spectral frequency, while microwave ovens use alternating current (AC), which can generate frictional heat, and most models use 900-1000 watts, which are narrow in frequency and very intense in energy. Most models use 900-1000 watts, which is a narrow spectrum with very intense energy." (See: The Truth About the Harmful Effects of Cooking in a Microwave Oven)
Nevertheless, the above statement is problematic, whether it is made in a cursory manner or in detail. National Kaohsiung Normal University, Department of Physics, Professor Huang Jianhua pointed out that the international regulations for domestic microwave ovens microwave wavelength of 122mm, corresponding to the frequency of 2.45GHz regardless of how to generate, as long as the same frequency of the electromagnetic waves of the physical properties of the same, not due to the source of change, if you really want to talk about the difference is that the sun produces microwaves, most of which are blocked by the atmosphere can not be the ground to come.
2. Microwave heating
The article says: "Microwave ovens use alternating current (AC) to generate microwaves that rotate water molecules in food at a rate of billions of times a second, causing tremendous friction between the molecules, which heats up the food quickly. It is commonly assumed that microwaved food is safe."
We checked, the original text does use "rotate" (rotate), but in another article on the harmful effects of microwaves, it uses "oscillation" (oscillation) (see ARE MICROWAVE OVENS A SOURCE OF DANGER?), and in the Chinese sources we found, at least it affirms "oscillation". Some critics say that the use of "rotation" in this article is wrong, but this is not the point (denying this point will not negate the whole article), the point is that under this premise, the detrimental theorists continue to deduce that "the friction of this water up to more than 100 million revolutions per second destroys the nutrients of the food (especially the proteins) and spoils the food".
3. Microwaving spoils food?
Following the above inference, Prof. Huang Jianhua questioned, in fact, heating food may produce possibly carcinogenic substances, but heating water molecules (microwave heating principle) temperature, about 100 degrees C, far less than the temperature generated by the stir-fried vegetables, possibly carcinogenic substances should be fewer and fewer, but also the frequency of the microwave energy is very low, interrupting the molecular bonding a few possibilities, how to make the non-toxic substances into toxic it?
The mainland media asked Chen Jinchuan, director of the Nanjing Yatai Microwave Energy Technology Research Institute, to analyze the situation, and he also pointed out that, "according to the theory of quantum mechanics, the microwave heating process does not break the structure of the food molecular chain. Only by destroying the structure of the molecular chain, the food molecules are broken down into ions and reassembled into new molecules, which will make the original food molecules undergo chemical changes. In terms of the microwave energy that can be demonstrated so far, it is not enough for chemical changes to take place, and the production of new unidentified molecules is out of the question." (See: Do microwaved foods really cause cancer? (See: Microwave Foods Really Cause Cancer?)
In the kinnet medical network, Dr. Wang Yufeng of the Department of Nuclear Medicine at Tzu Chi General Hospital in Daelin also pointed out that food cooked in microwave ovens, theoretically, microwaves are just a transfer of energy and do not remain in the food, but like baked food in general, whether it will cause certain proteins to become denatured is not conclusive at this point in time. In the webpage of the Hong Kong Food and Environmental Hygiene Department on microwave ovens, it is also mentioned that microwaves do not pass through food to the human body. (See: Hong Kong Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, kINNET National Medical Network)
When it comes to the question of whether microwave energy will remain in food, ARE MICROWAVE OVENS A SOURCE OF DANGER? harm the human body." But the text does not say who this professor is, we according to the text after the note 1 speculation, this professor should be referred to Paul Brodeur, this professor in 1989 and 1993 when the book, alleging that the wire is simply "current of death" (Currents of Death), in the book accused of "killers", in fact, not only the microwave, including wires, radar, VCRs, computer screens, and all household appliances in general.
According to an article written by Farley, a professor at the University of Nevada, Brodeur's allegations did cause panic at the time when they were publicized by the media. By the mid-1990s, however, more than a hundred clinical studies had been conducted that linked cancer to magnetic fields caused by electricity. (See: Power Lines and Cancer: Nothing to Fear Freshwater Note: Prof. Farley's article is very good, quotes from the Bible, said effortlessly, but unfortunately it is too long, if the whole translation, this report will be too long to say.)
4. The case of the death of Ms. Norma Levitt, a patient who died as a result of a microwave-heated blood transfusion mentioned in Raymond Francis's article, is from an earlier article (see Hidden Hazards of Microwave Cooking). This case has also been widely cited in most of the articles on the harmful effects of microwaves.
In the Hidden Hazards of Microwave Cooking article, the cause of death is mentioned only as 'microwave-heated blood transfusions'. The author says that heating blood is a 'common' occurrence, so why would something happen with microwave heating? Therefore, the microwave oven must have changed the molecular structure of blood! This "inference" (not a scientifically proven "conclusion", mind you) is flawed.
In fact, heating of blood in hospitals is something that needs to be done carefully. In the web page of National Taichung General Hospital, it is written in the section on blood transfusion that "blood heating must be done with special equipment (temperature can be controlled below 40 ℃, with thermometers available for monitoring, and alarms for over-temperature). Microwave heating or direct heating with warm or hot water is not allowed, as uneven heating may cause hemolysis. We have written about this before when we looked up "Pure liquids can't even be heated in the microwave alone?" When we looked up "Can't pure liquids be heated in a microwave oven alone?", we already wrote: "Chen Shou-chi, a professor of the Department of Electronics at the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, pointed out that because water does not conduct quickly, and because microwave ovens work by using a large amount of energy to concentrate and heat quickly, when water is heated alone in a microwave oven, it will result in the center of the cup of water being too hot, but the water at the edges will still be very low in temperature...". In other words, there are two dangers of heating blood in a home microwave oven, one is "uneven heating" (although, microwaves are still much more even than, for example, heating through water), and the other is temperature control. (See: National Military Taichung General Hospital, and, more importantly, it's unsafe to heat blood if it's not heated with "specialized equipment", and it's a huge leap of faith to infer that microwaves change the molecular structure of blood from this case alone.
5. The research of two PhDs at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology
Next is the discovery of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, and the translation here is a bit controversial, as the original text reads "the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology," and opponents on the mainland think that it should be turned into "the Swiss Federal Research Institute. However, it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. This study is also a major focus of the microwave hazard theory, almost every article must be mentioned.
The study by Hans Hertel and Bernard Blanc was published in 1992 as "COMPARATIVE STUDY ABOUT THE INFLUENCE ON MAN BY FOOD PREPARED CONVENTIONALLY AND IN THE MICROWAVE-OVEN." Unfortunately, we only found the name of the study, not the paper. However, most of the details of the experiment have been recorded in interviews reproduced on the Internet. There were only eight people in the experiment, one of whom was Hans Hertel himself, who was also the oldest, and the other volunteers were between the ages of 20 and 30. Hans Hertel said that the eight of them were confined to a hotel for eight weeks, and that they were excluded from the experiment because of variables that might affect the results, such as smoking, drinking or sex. Hans Hertel said the eight men were kept in a hotel for eight weeks, excluding smoking, drinking, or sex, which could affect the results of the experiment, and were then given raw milk and microwaved milk, raw vegetables and microwaved vegetables, and had their blood drawn once before eating and again after eating. (See: The Proven Dangers of Microwaves
Critics on the mainland said the experiment was very "crude", with too few samples and a 15-minute to 2-hour interval between blood draws, and criticized the study design as faulty (how could the changes have occurred right after eating?). The study was criticized for its faulty design (how could changes occur just after eating?). However, we have not found the original report, and in some of the articles, it only says "at defined intervals", so we are not sure about this part of the criticism. However, with a sample of only eight experimenters, it is too hasty to draw conclusions about a study that is claimed to be a "major discovery. (See: Who Says "Microwaved Foods Are Bad for Your Health?")
It was also mentioned in the mainland critique that Bernard Blanc later publicly changed his mind about the microwave theory, which is true. In the article "ARE MICROWAVE OVENS A SOURCE OF DANGER?", this was mentioned, but in the same article there was another "inside story" that Bernard Blanc had written privately to Hans Hertel saying that he had no choice but to take a public stand because someone was trying to jeopardize his family - this was because there was no other information. -This is doubtful as there is no other information to support it.
6. Research and bans in the former Soviet Union
Whether we look at the Chinese, or the English microwave hazard theory, we can find no further information on the Soviet Union's research and bans. For now, we have to leave it at that.
7. Do microwaves reduce nutritional value?
The problem of reduced nutrient value in food can occur whenever food is heated. Last year, we reported that a recent study by Spain's National Science Agency found that green cauliflower loses the most antioxidant molecules when microwaved, followed by poaching and pressure-cooking, and that steaming is the best option, as it results in virtually no loss of antioxidant molecules. (See: Microwave Treatment of Foods: Nutrient Loss) In a "Microwave Talk" article, Chen Chien-chi, a dietitian at the Taipei Medical College Hospital, mentioned that "compared to general heating methods (such as boiling and steaming), the depletion rate of vitamin B complex in microwave heating is similar to that of general heating methods, and the depletion rate of vitamin C is lower than that of general heating methods...". (See: Microwave Oven Miscellany)
Raymond Francis's analysis is roughly the same as the above, and the credibility of this article is questionable when combining the above verified facts. In checking the relevant information, we also found that there are actually many other theories about the harmful effects of microwaves, but if we were to check these theories again, we would probably need to publish a book, so for now, we will only analyze the Raymond Francis article that has been circulating on the Internet
Raymond Francis's analysis is as follows