Hey guys you're probably here because you're wondering is using a microwave to warm up
your food safe and does it have any health impacts, well not to worry in this weeks responding
to your comments I'm going to answer that where we look at fun questions, we look at
science based questions but most importantly we always look at the evidence. Web Agent
007: Please do a video on microwaves and if they are bad for your health? Web Agent 007
I like your comment, I like your style and this comment has got my attention. This comment
is from the how to lose weight video from a while ago I think it's a great comment so
lets jump straight into it and find out more. Let’s begin with how microwaves actually
cook your food: In a nutshell, microwaves are a type of electromagnetic radiation that
is easily absorbed by water, fat and sugar. This makes them move around and that movement
helps to heat up the food. Now I know what you’re thinking. As soon as you hear the
word radiation, you might think radioactivity. But don’t panic - microwaves don’t even
come close to nuclear bombs! The length and frequency of microwaves are actually very
close to the radio waves you use to connect to your wifi and to use your phone to send
a text or make a phone call. Even light is electromagnetic radiation, so microwave radiation
is not harmful. This is because microwaves are easily absorbed and blocked by the inside
of the microwave oven so they can’t escape. Just don’t stand within 30cm of the microwave
or have your head or face right next to it to prevent any radiation getting to you. This
is unlike UV rays in sunlight which are short, high frequency wavelengths that can damage
your skin cell DNA and cause skin cancer. Speaking of which, there is no evidence that
cooking your food in a microwave causes cancer. However, you may have heard of microwaves
melting plastics - so make sure to use microwave-safe plastic so you don’t get plastic melting
into your food! And if you’re worried about plastic leaching into your food, look for
the “BPA free” symbol on plastic containers. That’s because plastics with BPA are linked
to cancer, thyroid problems and obesity. Better yet, use glass, porcelain or ceramic microwaveable
containers. So is microwaved food bad for you? Well, a better question might be - whether
or not it’s unhealthy. To answer this question, there are three principles you need to know
about how to cook food to prevent losing the nutrients and vitamins inside it. That’s
because there’s no way of cooking or heating food that stops them from being lost or changed.
After all, we cook our food to make it easier to digest and to kill bacteria. That’s also
why when we talk about processed food being unhealthy, it’s because they’ve been heated
and transformed so much they hardly have any vitamins or nutrients in them.The first principle
is to cook food for a short period of time. This reduces heat damage to the nutrients
or vitamins and minerals in your food. The great thing about microwaves is that it’s
one of the fastest ways of cooking food. So microwaving definitely reduces the loss of
vitamins and nutrients from your food. Yes, you heard that right! Microwaving food might
be healthier than frying, baking or boiling your food. And that’s a nice segue into
the second principle - to preserve those all-important vitamins and nutrients, you want to avoid
submerging food like when you boil vegetables. And there’s no need to do that with a microwave
because you are kind of boiling food with its own water content when you cook it. This
is different from boiling food in water on a stove. Because you drain off the water and
lose some of the vitamins which dissolved in it during cooking. So in a way, microwaving
food might retain more vitamins in food rather than boiling them in water. This goes for
potatoes too! Thirdly, you don’t want to cook your food using too much heat. And a
microwave is perfect for that! You are a lot less likely to char or burn your food in a
microwave than other cooking methods. So you can preserve even more vitamins and nutrients.
It also means you’re less likely to get the formation of burnt food bits which contain
acrylamide. Kind of like burnt toast or burnt chips. There is some evidence that acrylamide
might cause cancer. If you want to read more about acrylamide, I have left a helpful link
from the NHS in the description below. However, it’s really important you make sure the
food you eat from a microwave has been cooked thoroughly so that it’s safe to eat - because
the last thing you need is food poisoning! And this can happen when bacteria grow on
food because it hasn’t been cooked properly. So remember if you’re cooking or reheating
food using a microwave, cover your food to contain the heat and prevent bacterial growth.
Once you take your food out, your food should be piping hot all the way through so no bacteria
can grow as it cools down. Now, let’s talk about microwave ready-meals you might buy
from a supermarket. They are often high in fat and high in salt - this is to make them
taste better and also to stop them going off. Ideally, you should eat microwave ready-meals
in moderation and think of them as a “treat food”. It’s really easy to overeat a microwave
ready meal as they tend to come in large portions and are high in calories. Maybe you could
try sharing a ready meal or having a small portion as a side dish to a main meal if you
are having cravings! If overeating is something you struggle with or want to learn more about,
I’ve got a video on overeating which i will link to in the description below. If you’ve
made it this far in the video, thank you so much for watching. I really hope you found
this video interesting. I’ve got to say, I’m relieved that using a microwave isn’t
as bad as I thought. Microwaves are a safe and convenient way to cook your food. There
is no evidence they cause harm and there is good evidence they help preserve nutrients
better than other cooking methods. They also prevent the formation of some harmful compounds
like acrylamide. To summarise, don’t stand too close to a microwave, make sure to heat
your food properly and if you are going to use a plastic container make sure it’s suitable
for microwaves and ideally, BPA free!