Mircowaves and Radiation
Have you heard that it is bad for your health to stand too close to a microwave while it reheats your leftover Pad Thai from last night? Although microwaves have been around for quite a while, cancer and radiation fears linger around this convenient kitchen appliance.
The New York Times, curious about these safety concerns, did a little investigation. They found that although microwaves can leak radiation, the amounts are negligible to human health.
There is a special unit within the FDA that regulates microwave safety. The Center for Devices and Radiological Health limits the amount of radiation any microwave on the market can leak in its lifetime to five milliwatts per square centimeter at roughly two inches away from the oven. While that sound like Greek to me, I found this comparison helpful: the most common cell phones operate at a peak power of about 1.6 watts or less. Cell phones when studied have not been found to cause any health problems.
Microwaves are made with additional safety features - metal mesh on the doors helps to trap microwaves, and door latches that halt the production of microwaves when the door is opened. You might be interested to know that radiation levels drop sharply the further away you are from your microwave. Radiation levels at a two foot distance from the microwave are 1/100th of levels at 2 inches.
So "nuke" those leftovers with no fear. If you want to know about using plastic to do that - read What's the Deal with: Microwaves and Plastic.
