Two areas of the body, the eyes and the testes, are particularly vulnerable to RF heating because there is relatively little blood flow in them to carry away excess heat. Additionally, the lens of the eye is particularly sensitive to intense heat, and exposure to high levels of microwaves can cause cataracts.
Microwaves also accelerate formation of cataracts due to diabetes. The corneal endothelium can be damaged by microwaves alone or in combination with some drugs.
Microwave radiation leaks are hard to detect because you can't smell or see microwaves. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which regulates radiation-emitting products such as microwave ovens, advises against standing directly in front of or up against the oven while it is operating.
The short answer is, not really. Injuries from microwave radiation are very rare, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Yes, you can stand a safe distance in front of the microwave. Microwave ovens are designed to keep in radiation. Against the glass, there is a protective mesh screen dotted with tiny holes.
The most commonly-used household item you should never put in the microwave is aluminum foil. It's essentially very thin metal which, when exposed to microwave radiation, will reflect the energy instead of absorbing it. This, in turn, can create sparks that could ruin the appliance, or worse, start a fire.
Because of this shielding effect, your hand inside a non-running microwave actually receives less radiation than your hand out in the open air. Either way, the radiation you are exposed to is so low-energy that there is nothing to be concerned about.
Surprisingly, a human being might survive being in a microwave for only 30s. Your eyeballs would probably be fried, as they have a lot of water. So would the inside of your mouth. Home microwaves have quite high frequencies, so chances are that your skin would protect your internal organs and blood!
People often say they are going to “nuke” their food, which is based on the common belief that microwaves reheat food by releasing radioactive energy.
For safety, as well as ease of use, the microwave should be placed no higher than the shoulder height of the primary user. Six inches below shoulder height is better for older users. The most convenient height, according to ergonomic studies, is between 2 inches below and 10 inches above the user's elbow height.
"Microwaves can be harmful if they are leaking radiation," says Dr Shivani Sachdev Gaur of Phoenix hospital. The waves of a microwave oven can travel up to 12 cm, so it is harmful for a pregnant woman to stand near a microwave oven, especially if it is old and damaged, she says.
The brain is one of the most sensitive target organs for microwave radiation, where mitochondrial injury occurs earlier and more severely than in other organs. Energy metabolism disorders do play an important role during the process of microwave radiation-induced brain damage.
Increasing the dose of ionizing radiation causes increasing opacification of the lens, which appears after a decreasing latency period. Like cataract formation by microwaves, cataractogenesis induced by ionizing radiation is associated with damage to the lens cell membrane.
The FDA rules also say that only a certain amount of radiation can leak from the microwave at about 2 inches away or farther. The amount is 5 milliwatts per square centimeter, which is a level of radiation that is not dangerous to people.
A Human Being in a Microwave
Well, no matter what, it wouldn't be a pleasant experience. But it probably wouldn't cook your internal organs. Most of the damage would be superficial. (It would probably be a good idea to tightly cover your eyes, which are more watery than most things in your body.)
The answer to this simple question is yes! As long as the microwave isn't being run empty, and there's food inside the appliance, it's fine to keep it running for this long.
When the oven is empty none, or almost none of the microwaves are absorbed. A large amount of energy reflects around the oven chamber resulting in large standing waves that can damage the unit. If the microwave works after it has been run while empty, then the unit is safe to use.
Do not operate the oven while empty. This can cause damage to the oven or create the possibility of a fire.
While almost all foods can be reheated numerous times, it is best practice to avoid reheating the same meal where possible. Each time food is cooled, stored and reheated, the likelihood of harmful bacteria multiplying increases.
Microwaving is a safe way to cook broccoli and requires less time than steaming. Microwaving is also thought to preserve the nutrients in vegetables most effectively.