Paris Vu du Ciel, Paris from the sky

Paris Vu du Ciel

Paris from the sky

Paris vista desde el Cielo

Soeur Sourire 🙏 Dominique (1963)

Sœur Sourire

(1963)

The Singing Nun

👇  🎼  👇

Dominique, inique, inique
s'en allait tout simplement
Routier pauvre et chantant
En tous chemins, en tous lieux
Il ne parle que du bon Dieu
Il ne parle que du bon Dieu

A l'époque où Jean-sans-Terre
D'Angleterre était le Roi
Dominique, notre Père
Combattit les Albigeois

Refrain
Certain jour un hérétique
Par des ronces le conduit
Mais notre père Dominique
Par sa joie le convertit

Refrain
Ni chameau, ni diligence
Il parcourt l'Europe à pied
Scandinavie ou Provence
Dans la sainte pauvreté

Refrain
Enflamma de toute école
Filles et garçons pleins d'ardeur
Et pour semer la Parole
Inventa les Frères-Prêcheurs

Refrain
Chez Dominique et ses frères
Le pain s'en vint à manquer
Et deux anges se présentèrent
Portant de grands pains dorés

Refrain
Dominique vit en rêve
Les prêcheurs du monde entier
Sous le manteau de la Vierge
En grand nombre rassemblés

Refrain
Dominique, mon bon Père
Garde-nous simples et gais
Pour annoncer а nos frères
La vie et la véritéRefrain

Jeanne Deckers (17 October 1933 – 29 March 1985), aka Jeannine Deckers, better known as Sœur Sourire ("Sister Smile", often credited as The Singing Nun in English-speaking countries), was a Belgian singer-songwriter and initially a member of the Dominican Order in Belgium as Sister Luc-Gabrielle.

She acquired world fame in 1963 with the release of the French-language song "Dominique", which topped the U.S. Billboard and other charts.

Early years
She was born Jeanne Paule Deckers in Laeken in 1933, the daughter of a pâtisserie shop owner, and was educated in a Catholic school in Brussels. She was a keen Girl Guide who bought her first guitar to play at Guide evening events. Though she was thinking about becoming a nun even as a young woman, she trained and then worked as a teacher.
 

In September 1959 she entered the Missionary Dominican Sisters of Our Lady of Fichermont, headquartered in the city of Waterloo, where she took the name Sister Luc-Gabrielle.

Music career
While in the convent, Deckers wrote, sang and performed her own songs, which were so well received by her fellow nuns and visitors that her religious superiors encouraged her to record an album, which visitors and retreatants at the convent would be able to purchase.

In 1961, the album was recorded in Brussels at Philips; the single "Dominique" became an international hit, and in 1962 her album sold nearly two million copies. The Dominican Sister became an international celebrity, with the stage name of Sœur Sourire ("Sister Smile"). She gave concerts and appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show on 5 January 1964. "Dominique" was the first, and remains the only, Belgian song to be a number one hit single in the United States.

Deckers found it difficult having to live up to her publicity as "a true girl scout", always happy and in a good mood. "I was never allowed to be depressed", Deckers remembered in 1979. "The mother superior used to censor my songs and take out any verses I wrote when I was feeling sad."

In 1963 she was sent by her order to take theology courses at the University of Louvain. She liked the student life, if not her courses. She reconnected with a friend from her youth, Annie Pécher, with whom she slowly developed a very close relationship.

Films

The Singing Nun is a 1966 American semi-biographical film about the life of Deckers. It stars Debbie Reynolds in the title role. The film also stars Ricardo Montalbán, Katharine Ross, Chad Everett, and Ed Sullivan as himself.

In 2009, Sœur Sourire, a Franco-Belgian biopic, starring Cécile de France as Deckers, was released.

The song "Dominique" is topically heard early in episode 10 of season 3 of Mad Men, set in 1963.

 

Sœur Sourire - Tous les Chemins

Sœur Sourire

Tous les Chemins

Soeur Sourire - Tous les Chemins 
Lyrics - Musique en Parole

Soeur Sourire - Fleur de cactus

Soeur Sourire
'Fleur de Cactus'

Lyrics

Soeur Sourire - Dominique (Lyrics French)

Soeur Sourire
Dominique 

Sœur Sourire - Sœur Adèle

Sœur Sourire

Sœur Adèle

*

*

Singing Nun

Sœur Sourire - Sœur Adèle

C'était une guitare espagnole
Née d'un bouleau ou d'un sapin
Dans une boutique de Barcelone
Un beau matin du mois de juin
Au fond du cœur une étiquette
Indique son identité
Et sa parole chaude et discrète
é.tait bien douce à écouter

Dans une vitrine du vieux Bruxelles
On la suspendit par le cou
Puis certain jour une demoiselle
S'en vint l'acheter pour quelques sous
Adieu flamencos chauds d'Espagne
Andalousie et corridas
Jolie guitare ma compagne
Adèle tu t'appeleras

Pour répondre à la voix divine
Qui l'invitait à sa moisson
La péronnelle "C'est moi" quitta la ville
Pour un couvent des environs
Adèle partit dans les bagages
Et commença son noviciat
Joyeuse et pleine de courage
Et chanta Dieu à pleine voix

Sur tous les tons de toute son âme
Adèle s'est vouée au Seigneur
Et ses chansons partout proclament
Que servir Dieu c'est son bonheur
Derrière les harpes et les cithares
Qui forment l'orchestre des cieux
On entendra humble guitare
Un jour Adèle chez le bon Dieu

*

Sœur Sourire - Alléluia

Sœur Sourire - Alléluia

Singing Nun

 
J'allais sur toutes les routes vagabondant
Au gré du temps au gré du vent
Traînant partout ma lassitude
Au gré du temps au gré du vent
Pour l'amour où Dieu m'habite
Pour la vie qu'il partage avec moi
Pour le bonheur que je lui dois
Alléluia!

Chansons Célestes

Inoubliables

V

Sœur Sourire - J'ai Trouvé Le Seigneur

Sœur Sourire

J'ai Trouvé Le Seigneur

Sœur Sourire - Plume de Radis

Sœur Sourire

Plume de Radis

 

 

Soeur Sourire✬Entre les Étoiles

Sœur Sourire

Entre les Étoiles

Entre les étoiles	Among the stars
Le Seigneur a écrit ton nom	The Lord has written your name
Entre les étoiles	Among the stars
Tout là-haut dans sa maison	In His house way up high
Entre les étoiles	Among the stars
Le Seigneur a posé ta vie	The Lord loves your life
Entre les étoiles	Among the stars
Près de lui en Paradis	Close to Him in paradise
La nuit où le Seigneur	The night when the Lord
t'a désiré la nuit	wished for you
La nuit où de deux chairs	The night, the night when two lovers
il a crée ta vie	gave you life
La nuit où son amour le	The night when out of love God
premier t'a souri	Oh bless the night !
Bénis la nuit
Refrrain	Chorus
Le jour où le Seigneur t'a racheté	The day when the Lord redeemed you
le jour	The day
Le jour où il t'a fait son enfant	The day when He made you
pour toujours	His child always
Le jour où de ton cur il a fait	The day when your heart
son séjour	Stayed with the Lord
Bénis le jour	Bless the day !
Refrrain	Chorus
Le soir où le Seigneur t'appelera	The evening when the Lord called your name
le soir	The evening
Le soir où tes vieux jours hâteront	The evening when you've grown old
le Départ	and you depart this world
Le soir du rendez-vous transfiguré	The evening when you return
I'espoir	Your spirit transformed
Bénis le soir	Bless the evening !
Refrrain	Chorus

Classical Music Mashup

Classical Music
Mashup

 

Classical Music Mashup II

Featuring 52 pieces by 31 composers. 
How many of these timeless tunes can you name?
 

Music and video by Grant Woolard

New York Might Look Like This as Sea Levels Rise

New York Might Look Like This

As Sea Levels Rise

Published on Sep 23, 2016

When will New York City sink?

Things aren't looking great.

How Did Latin Become A Dead Language? 🤔

How Did Latin Become

A Dead Language?

👇  🖥️  👇

While Latin's influence is apparent in many modern languages, it is no longer commonly spoken. 

Is Latin a dead language? Whether you agree or not,  you have spoken a countless number of Latin language words if you speak any international language. The influence of this ancient language is obvious in many modern languages. But I have never seen anyone in my time speaking Latin fluently. It has died out since. How did Latin become a dead language?
Gone are those days when Latin was the official language in the entire Roman Empire. When the Catholic Church was so influential in ancient Rome, the Latin language was the king of the world; the language of international communication, education, science, and government. So how did Latin become a dead language when it was so influential several centuries ago?
Though now considered a dead language, it’s still being used in certain contexts. Of course, it no longer has a native speaker. Yet, rather than consider it dead, look into English, French, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, and Spanish to see the metamorphosis of Latin. You’ll see its grammar, tenses, and intricacies in these languages.
So how did such an influential language die? One undisputable reason is the fate of the Empire that developed the language. When Roman Empire failed, Latin died and new languages were born from the former territories of the Western Roman Empire where the language was developed. The struggle for power in the Middle Age and through the centuries moved new nations to focus on developing their unique official languages. They considered national languages an ingredient of nationalism sweeping across Europe.

👇  🖥️  👇

So exactly why did the language die out?

When the Catholic Church gained influence in ancient Rome, Latin became the official language of the sprawling Roman Empire. Latin was king of the world -- the language of international communication, scholarship, and science. 

So what happened? Jules Suzdaltsev investigates in today's Seeker Daily report.

Latin is now considered a dead language, meaning it's still used in specific contexts, but does not have any native speakers. (Sanskrit is another dead language.) 

In historical terms, Latin didn't die so much as it changed -- into French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and Romanian. 

These are known as the Romance languages -- "Rome" is the root term -- and while other tongues developed from Latin, these are the most common.

All five of these languages incorporate grammar, tenses and specific intricacies from Latin. Not coincidentally, each language developed in former territories of the Western Roman Empire. When that empire failed, Latin died, and the new languages were born.

Part of the reason that Latin passed out of common usage is because, as a language, it's incredibly complex. Classical Latin is highly inflected, meaning that nearly every word is potentially modified based on tense, case, voice, aspect, person, number, gender and mood. With no central power promoting and standardizing usage of Classical Latin, it gradually passed away from everyday usage.

Vulgar Latin, essentially a simplified version of the mother tongue, survived for a while but diverged more and more as it folded in various local languages. By the end of the sixth century, people from different sections of the former empire could no longer understand each other. 

Latin had died as a living language.

Still, due to the overwhelming prevalence of Latin in early Western literature, medicine and science, Latin as a language of antiquity never quite went extinct -- a term which has its own particular meaning in linguistics. 

Today, Latin is still used in many technical fields, medical terminology and taxonomy, the scientific classification of species.

 http://www.seeker.com/how-did-latin-become-a-dead-language-2008876974.html

Romance Languages Map

Popular Latin*

• Old French*
• French
• Occitan (Provençal)
• Spanish
• Asturian
• Galician
• Catalan
• Portuguese 
• Italian
• Corsican
• Rhaetoromance

Indo-European Linguistic Studies Links
 http://tied.verbix.com/links1.html#ita

The Amazing Diversity of Languages

Around the World

in one Map

http://www.vox.com/2014/7/2/5862696/where-people-speak-what-languages

Microwave Ovens 👨🏼‍🍳 Science Debunking Internet Hoax 🍿

Debunking An Internet Hoax

What Science Really Says About Microwave Ovens

Your Food And Your Health 

by Tom Venuto posted in  Food & Nutrition 

“Microwave ovens will kill you!” Or so they say… If you’ve ever surfed the internet for information on health and nutrition, there’s little doubt you’ve come across scare stories about microwave ovens. Online natural health “experts” claim that microwaves will “zap” your food, deplete it of important nutrients and alter its molecular structure in dangerous ways. They also warn that microwave exposure and eating food cooked in microwave ovens will cause harm to your body and even cause cancer!

Is there any truth to any of these reports? Why are some people so paranoid about an appliance that has been used safely by millions of people for decades? Should you stop using a microwave oven for reheating leftovers, making frozen dinners or cooking your vegetables, potatoes, meat, oatmeal or other foods?

These are important questions because: 

A) Your health is your number one priority.

B) The microwave oven, while it may not replace a conventional oven and certainly doesn’t produce better tasting food, is unquestionably one of the greatest time savers and conveniences you can have in your kitchen. You’re not only about to get the answers, this also will be the last article about the microwave controversy you’ll ever have to read because it demolishes the microwave myths with undeniable proof: facts, science and evidence… not urban legends and fear mongering.

What started all the internet scare stories?

Rumors are often started and circulated on the internet without anyone ever confirming the source. Did you ever get one of those random emails that said something like, “10 reasons to throw out your microwave” and then forward it right on to a friend, just assuming it was true? (go ahead, fess up).  A large part of all the microwave alarmism today can be traced back to a single story that was spread on the internet until it went viral and was eventually accepted as factual.  It’s the story of the infamous “Swiss research” done by “food researcher” Hans Hertel, who allegedly performed his own private study to see how microwaved foods affected the results of blood tests. A typical iteration of the story goes like this:

“The use of microwave ovens in cooking can alter the structure of nutriments in foods, making it difficult for the organism to make use of them. Hertel discovered that food cooked or thawed in a microwave oven could cause changes in the blood, indicating that a process of illness is developing. SIMILAR CHANGES ARE ALSO FOUND IN THE CASE OF CANCER.”

As with most alarmist nutrition nonsense on the net, this one also involves the ubiquitous conspiracy theory. The story continues:

“The best studies about the use of microwaves to heat food were purposely kept from consumers. Hertel was efficiently “gagged” by Swiss microwave oven producers. For over 10 years, Hertel has fought for the right to tell the world what he’d discovered.”

Actually the best studies are NOT kept from consumers, they are peer reviewed, replicated and published in scientific journals where we can actually look them up. Alas, we cannot access Hertel’s “research” to judge its validity because it was never published.  In fact, by Hertel and his follower’s own accounts, this “study” was just himself, Bernard Blanc (who later recanted) and six of their buddies who locked themselves in a hotel room and conducted a personal and arguably non-scientific and non-controlled experiment. This is not real research; it was never verified or replicated by other researchers. Yet you see Hertel quoted in almost every “microwaves equal death” article on the Internet, a good tipoff that everything else in the article is suspect as well.

Microwave ovens, radiation and the cancer scare

One tactic used by microwave scaremongers is to instill fears about radiation and cancer.  When people hear the word radiation, they tend to freak out.  I suspect that even people who understand that we’re not talking about a nuclear accident, gamma rays or x rays still have an uncomfortable feeling about “radiation” cooking their food (after all, we call it “nuking” right?)  But when we talk about microwave “radiation” we are simply talking about production of thermal energy, aka, heat. Radiation and radioactive are NOT the same thing. Celeste Robb-Nicholson, M.D. from the Harvard Health Review explains:

“Microwaves do not cause cancer. They’re a form of non-ionizing radiation and thus cannot ionize tissue. Microwave ovens use low-frequency waves of electrical and magnetic energy to produce heat to cook food. They don’t make food radioactive, nor do they trigger cancer-causing genetic mutations.”

A search of the medical literature brings up absolutely nothing linking microwave cooking to cancer.  The research says that concern over cancer causing compounds such as heterocyclic amines (HCAs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), would be better directed toward educating consumers on the charring and blackening that occurs when grilling or barbecuing muscle meats, rather than cooking the meat in microwave ovens.  In fact, cooking in a microwave can actually REDUCE the formation of HCAs. This quote comes from the National Cancer Institute (www.cancer.gov):

“Studies have shown that microwaving meat prior to cooking helps to decrease mutagens by removing the precursors. Meats that were microwaved for 2 minutes prior to cooking had a 90-percent decrease in HCA content.”

Microwave radiation leaks

Although microwaves are a form of non-ionizing radiation, you wouldn’t want prolonged exposure to them at high power any more than you’d want to stick your head in the conventional oven on high and leave it there.  You also wouldn’t turn the temperature up in your house to 325 degrees to roast a turkey – the idea is to cook the bird, not you.  So what if the microwaves get OUT of the oven? Could they hurt you then?

In the early days of the microwave oven, leaks were more of a concern due to imperfect oven designs. Due to federal standards and improved engineering today, experts agree that this is now a non-issue. According to the FDA, there is little cause for concern about microwaves leaking from the oven unless the door hinges, latch or seals are damaged. (you can always buy a leak detector if you’re paranoid).  If you’re still worried, simply back away from the microwave while it’s running. Microwave energy rapidly dissipates as you move away from the source. Also, the way microwaves are manufactured, the second the door is open the device shuts down and no radiation leaks out after you’ve opened the door.

Do microwave ovens alter the molecular structure of food in unhealthy ways?

NO! There’s no evidence that microwave cooking alters the molecular structure of the food in a damaging and unhealthy way.  At Mercola dot com, which claims to the #1 natural health website online, the controversial alternative-natural health doctor Joseph Mercola has published alarmist articles that have spread microwave worries all across the internet like wildfire.  Mercola claims that microwave ovens are a toxic threat to you and your family. He says that “microwaving distorts and deforms the molecules of whatever food or other substance you subject it to.”  Well, no kidding the molecules change; that’s called cooking and the molecular changes caused by cooking a food in a microwave are no different and no more harmful than the heating of a food any other way.

Conveniently, Dr. Mercola, who has received numerous warning letters from the FDA for making unsubstantiated claims in marketing, will be glad to sell you his convection oven after you read his article that scares you into throwing out your microwave.

Mercola also claims that “your microwave turns your beautiful, organic veggies, for which you’ve paid such a premium in money or labor, into “dead” food that can cause disease.”

Wrong again. There’s been no human research ever published to prove that microwaved foods cause disease, just a bunch of conspiracy theories and alarmist rantings.   However, a Dutch study in 1995 that was published in the journal Food Chemistry did conduct a toxicity experiment on rats using human food that found the opposite. The researchers intentionally subjected the food to misuse treatment by reheating in a microwave repeatedly to make sure to concentrate any potentially harmful substances. The tests were exhaustive and no harmful effects were found:

“Criteria to assess toxicity included clinical observations, ophthalmoscopy, growth, food and water intake, haematology, clinical chemistry, urinalysis, organ weights, micronucleated erythrocytes in bone marrow, gross examination at autopsy and microscopic examination of a wide range of organs. The results indicate no adverse effects of the diets cooked by microwave compared with those cooked conventionally.”

Do microwave ovens zap the nutrition right out of your food?

What about the criticisms that nutrients get “zapped” right out of the food when you “nuke” them? They’re factual aren’t they? There’s a sliver of truth to this, but all cooking can destroy nutrients. What the microwave critics don’t tell you is that microwave cooking can actually preserve nutrients better than some other cooking methods like boiling. Minerals hold up particularly very well.  At least two studies did raise concern over major flavonoid losses in broccoli and one over vitamin C. One of the studies showed a 97% loss of flavonoids in the broccoli, which has been the basis of the “microwaves zap nutrients” myth ever since.  If microwave fear-mongers actually read the studies however (imagine that), they would see that the major nutrient losses were created by cooking the veggies in a lot of water.   Nutrient losses while microwaving depend mostly on cooking power, cooking duration and volume of cooking water.  The studies did not conclude that you shouldn’t cook in a microwave oven, they concluded that steaming is the preferred method for retaining the most nutrients in vegetables and that if you cook broccoli or other veggies in a microwave, don’t overcook them and don’t cook them in water.

Vitamin losses from cooking meat in the microwave have also been studied. A 1998 study from Japan showed a 30% loss of vitamin B-12 from cooking meats in a microwave. However, it’s not a massive nutrient loss compared to boiled vegetables and since B-12 is heat sensitive, similar losses occur from conventional cooking as well, so once again it’s not a microwave-exclusive problem.  Many people don’t care for microwaved meat anyway (the common joke is “tastes like rubber”), but all things considered, studies say that microwaving your veggies is not a bad way to cook them. In fact, some research says microwaving retains more nutrients due to the fast cooking times. A 1982 study by Cross and Fung published in Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition concluded:

“Overall, the nutritional effects of microwaves on protein, lipid, and minerals appear minimal. A large amount of data is available on the effects of microwaves on vitamins. It is concluded that there are only slight differences between microwave and conventional cooking on vitamin retention in foods. In conclusion, no significant nutritional differences exist between foods prepared by conventional and microwave methods. Any differences reported in the literature are minimal.”

Will microwaves destroy your precious protein?

Here’s an issue that concerns some of us bodybuilders and fitness minded folks:  Does microwave cooking damage or denature protein?  This too has been researched and once again the microwave fear-mongers are wrong when they claim that microwaving ruins the protein.  In the Journal of Scientific Food Agriculture, Jonker and colleagues wrote:

“In general, the nutritive value of proteins in foods is comparable, whether cooking is done by microwaves or conventional means…”

Cooking at high temperatures has potential to denature protein, but that’s an excess  heat issue, not a microwave oven issue.  The amount of denaturation depends on how long and at what temperature the food is cooked.  Some of the more delicate biological subfractions could be damaged or destroyed in proteins like whey, but that doesn’t mean the protein quality or amino acids themselves are destroyed.  On a related macronutrient note, research from Poland studied the effect of conventional cooking versus microwaving on essential fatty acids in herring. There was no damage to the omega-3 fatty acids.

Non uniform heating of food: Caution! Watch out for hot spots!

Have you ever noticed how some parts of your microwaved food are cooked thoroughly and others are still luke warm or even cold? It can definitely be annoying, but experts have expressed a serious concern over the potential for burns in adults, children and infants because one portion of the food can be cool or warm and another scalding hot.  Microwave technology has improved over the years to help mitigate this “hot spot” problem (including rotating carousels), but non-uniform heating is always somewhat of an issue to be aware of when consuming food cooked with microwave ovens.

This problem is easily solved with a little common sense and caution. Just mix or stir your food, and let it stand briefly before eating it. Eat hot food with caution.

Bacteria worries

Health alarmists often publish claims that deadly and dangerous bacteria can survive in foods cooked in a microwave oven. There have indeed been case studies published in medical journals about listeria, ecoli and salmonella. But guess what – it can happen with any cooking method if the meat isn’t cooked completely.  Microwave ovens are used most often for reheating food, but some people use microwaves to cook raw meats. Because microwave ovens may heat food non-uniformly, if you try to you cook a whole, stuffed chicken in the microwave, some areas may not get cooked completely, so ecoli or listeria, if present, may not be destroyed.  If you don’t want to take any chances, don’t cook whole raw chickens in the microwave!   Same thing with eggs. Lightly cooked eggs could harbor salmonella. Whether you’re using a microwave or a conventional stovetop to cook eggs, make sure they’re fully cooked. Salmonella risk from eating raw eggs is very low, but eat them raw at your own risk (you only need ONE good case of food poisoning in your lifetime to never ever want to experience it again).

By the way Rocky Balboa wannabes, a study from the Journal of Nutrition showed that eggs are more digestible when they’re cooked, not raw.

Exploding eggs?

Speaking of eggs, this may sound strange, but there have been at least four papers published in medical journals which reported cases of eye injuries from the explosion of microwaved eggs.   One published in the journal of ophthalmology in 1998 wrote up two case studies and said that the flying hot eggs caused serious injuries:

“The first patient required limbal conjunctival transplantation and a subsequent penetrating keratoplasty in the right eye and prolonged treatment of superficial keratitis in the left eye. The second patient sustained bilateral corneal epithelial defects and unilateral intrastromal hemorrhage.”

I don’t cook my eggs in the microwave, I think they have the texture of rubber.  But if you nuke yours, ironically, there’s more legitimacy to a rare freak exploding hot egg accident than the ridiculous claims of cancer.  Also, on a slightly tangential, but related note, the eye is a vulnerable organ due to the anatomy and physiology of the lens, so it’s prone to overheating with overexposure to microwaves. This would only be a danger in the kitchen if your microwave oven screen or door mechanism were faulty and you sat there with your nose pressed up against the glass (see section on radiation leaks above).

Microwaved milk and infant formula dangers?

Anti microwave websites often mention that microwave-heated baby formulas and breast milk should not be fed to infants, based on potential damage to the milk itself or potential burn injuries.  One study from the Stanford University School of Medicine was published in the journal Pediatrics. They tested 22 human milk samples for lysozyme activity, total IgA, and specific secretory IgA to E coli by heating them by microwave at various low and high power settings. They concluded that microwaving appears to be contraindicated at high temperatures due to nutrient damage, and questioned microwave use even at lower temperatures.  The Stanford study is selectively quoted all the time by anti-microwave groups. What about the rest of the research? A study published in the International Journal of Food Science and Nutrition said, “microwave heating of human milk can be performed without significant losses of examined immunoglobulins and nutrients, provided the final temperatures are below 60 degrees C.”  Also, let me quote Jonker again from The Journal of Scientific  Food Agrigulture:

“When the microwave treatment is well controlled to avoid overheating, such biological properties as the clotting activity of plasma and antibacterial activities are reasonably maintained.”

As I mentioned earlier, it appears that overheating any food with any cooking method could destroy a small portion of the nutrients, but it doesn’t make the food harmful to eat. As noted above, heating in a microwave does not create or add any toxic compounds to foods or drinks.

Superheated liquids? (It made “MYTHBUSTERS”)

Burns are a possible safety concern due to the uneven heating of food. There’s also a potential danger for anyone to get scalded due to overheated liquids (or steam).  In microwave ovens, the water can become superheated past its boiling point and yet bubbles don’t form. When the liquid is disturbed or something is dropped in it, like sugar, the heat is released, and it’s possible for boiling water to bubble over and out of the container.  There’s an urban legend that that microwaved water can explode in your face. While it may not explode literally, this is not a complete myth – microwave water or hot beverages can bubble over aka “erupt” due to the superheating phenomenon (water in a liquid state that is over 100 degrees celsius). This was actually tested on an episode of MythBusters (video below).  Burns from liquids could happen to adults, children or infants from overheating or spills. In one unfortunate case study from a hospital, the teat from an infant’s bottle that had been heated in the microwave exploded scalding hot milk on the child resulting in extremely serious burn injuries to the face, mouth, trachea, palate, pharynx and esophagus.    Of course, grown adults have been known to burn themselves in kitchen mishaps or even on McDonalds coffee (and then sue). But don’t blame the microwave (or Mcdonalds), just be careful of hot stuff, folks. Hot stuff burns, you know.

Superheating of water (Mythbusters)

This is what happens when you superheat water in a microwave demonstrated by the mythbusters

👇   👨🏼‍🍳    👇

What about about plastics releasing toxins into the food?

Lots of people are worried about cooking in plastic containers these days. Can’t chemicals leach out of the plastic and into your food? Sometimes they can. But that’s what microwave-safe containers are for.

A Greek study found that dioctyladipate (DOA) and acetyltributylcitrate (ATBC) plasticizers from food-grade PVC and PVDC/PVC leak into olive oil and water when cooked in the microwave.

A study from the European food research and technology journal found that DOA and ATBC plasticizers from plasticized poly(vinyl chloride) and poly(vinylidene chloride/vinyl chloride) films migrated into ground meat of varying fat content during microwave heating.

The most recent concerns have been over Bisphenol A (BPA), a plasticizer used in polycarbonate plastics such as storage containers, bottles and even can liners. How much can leach into food, under what circumstances and what are the health consequences are hotly debated and this subject goes far beyond the scope of this article.  Even though there’s some truth to the concerns about plastics, they’re often overblown and mixed in with myths (the dioxin chain email hoax comes to mind). And of relevance to our discussion, this is not a microwave problem, it’s a heating of certain plastics problem.

The simple solution: use only plastic containers that are microwave-safe or to be absolutely sure, stick with corning ware, ceramics or microwave safe glass. If you cook with saran wrap in the microwave, avoid direct contact of the wrap with the food. Do not use cold storage containers or foam insulated containers in the microwave either.

The Real Danger: Getting second hand natural health information off the internet

As you can see, there are some legitimate microwave oven safety issues to be aware of, but they’re no different than basic cooking safety with any kind of conventional oven, stovetop, grill or fire.  If you pay attention, you’ll notice that nearly all of the “gloom and doom” stuff is uncritical, propagandist pseudoscience coming from the “alternative health,” “natural health” or “raw foods” movements (by the way, some nutrients become more bio-available when cooked).   Some of the people and organizations who spread this misinformation are honest and sincerely believe in what they’re saying. But as physicist Robert Park wrote in Voodoo Science, “what may begin as honest error has a way of evolving through almost imperceptible steps from self-delusion to fraud.” True to that point, some are using scare tactics as tools for marketing or furthering their agendas.

Other people are just “out there.” I swear some of them are conspiracy theory, tin foil hat and little green men types.

And this months Tin foil hat award goes to…

I’ve had some of these natural health alarmists tell me that there’s no research proving microwaves are safe and we have no way of knowing they won’t cause cancer in the long term.  Well no kidding you can’t prove a negative, but that line of argument alone shows the fallacy in their way of thinking.  Enormous amounts of research have been done for decades on microwaves and any physicist or food scientist can explain to you how they work to safely cook your food (a couple of them do just that, below).

To many of these internet kooks, “research” means quoting other natural health websites, which in turn, quote other natural health sites and regurgitate urban legends. Even authorities with real credentials like M.D. are fallible and not above reproach.

What about me? Why did I write this lonnnnnng article on microwaves? Do I have some kind of agenda of my own?

I’m a bodybuilder, but I’m not just interested in muscle mass and ripped abs. Health is my top priority.  If microwave ovens caused health problems, I’m the first person to want to know about it because I use the microwave a lot.  I use it to heat coffee or tea, to thaw meats, to cook my oatmeal every morning and for cooking potatoes and yams (I do prefer those baked, but the microwave is faster).  I also cook my veggies in the microwave and reheat pre-cooked meals.  I estimate that I use a microwave at least three to five times a day and I’ve done that almost every day for the last 25 years. Based on my use, if microwaves were harmful, I figure I’d be a prime example of someone who should have health problems. I don’t. My health is perfect. I have not been to a doctor for illness or injury in 22 years and I continue to set personal records in the gym today at age 42.

I have no pro-microwave agenda and in fact, I’m interested in a natural approach to health and bodybuilding – it’s real food and drug-free for me – natural for life and not a prescription to be found in my medicine cabinet...  I’m simply sick of poorly-researched, non-vetted disinformation about health and fitness, and a few myths promoted by alternative natural health publishers have always pushed my buttons and irritated me to the brink of insanity. The microwave myth is one of them.

Just to be fair, let me say that I agree it’s intelligent and prudent to question what we eat, how what we eat is processed and even how what we eat is cooked. However, we must question critically and look at real evidence before jumping to conclusions and spreading panic around the net. Stop and think first, before you click the “forward” or “share” buttons.

But hey, I’m a “muscle-head,” not a biochemist, a physicist or a food scientist, so don’t listen to me if you don’t want to. Fact check my article and look up all the references for yourself… AND let me close with some feedback from a couple of people who ARE food scientists.

Conclusions from food scientists

Elissa Lowe is a blogger for ultimate fat burner dot com and shes a senior moderator at Will Brink’s bodybuilding and fat loss forums. She also has a science background with degrees in food technology and she’s one of the sharpest ladies in this field, not to mention one of the fittest (she can kick ass in a gym OR in a debate). I asked her if microwaved foods were safe and here’s what she told me:

“Are microwaved foods safe? If your only source of information is the internet, I wouldn’t blame you for having some doubts! There are a lot of scary stories floating around in cyberspace. For example, on one popular web site, I learned that microwave ovens “… threaten your health by violently ripping the molecules in your food apart.”

Say, what?! As someone who’s studied a LOT of chemistry and biochemistry, I have NO idea what that even means. Scientifically, it’s nonsense.

But that’s the point: statements like this are designed to frighten… not enlighten. I’ve looked into several references cited as “proof” of the “dangers” of microwave ovens (such as the alleged “toxicity” of microwaved blood; the destruction of bioactive compounds in breast milk, the Swiss “clinical study,” etc.), and, in each case, I’ve discovered that reality has seriously been distorted to support a preconceived, “denialist” position.

What can I say? There are a lot of paranoid people out there… not to mention those who are all-too-willing to stoke paranoia for profit. As this well-known parody on the dangers of “dihydrogen monoxide” demonstrates, anything can be made to sound sinister: www.dhmo.org/

So what’s the truth? Food scientists have researched the effects of microwave cooking to the nth degree. “Big Food” isn’t overly concerned about your health, but it is concerned (obsessed, really) with creating completely uniform consumer products. Thus, every aspect of production and routine consumer handling is understood… in mind-numbing detail. Sure, papers like “Physicochemical Changes in Dietary Fiber of Green Beans after Repeated Microwave Treatments,” or “Mutagen Formation in Beefburgers Processed by Frying or Microwave with use of Flavoring and Browning Agents” are duller than dirt. Nonetheless, they’re part of a looooong, detailed and – most importantly – scientifically legitimate “paper trail” on the effects of microwave cooking.

Reading these unexciting papers leads to an equally unexciting conclusion: there’s nada that happens to food cooked in a microwave that doesn’t also happen with other forms of cooking. Where differences (positive or negative) exist, they’re in the degree; not the type. Scientists have searched for “athermal” or “non-thermal” reaction products that might be harmful to human health, but nothing unusual has been found. Research in model, non-food systems suggests there may be alterations in the rates of certain reactions (such as protein unfolding) which can’t be explained solely in terms of thermal effects, but that’s about it. No “unique radiolytic compounds” – let alone toxic ones – have been discovered.”

I also contacted Ashim Datta, a professor of biological and environmental engineering at Cornell University. He’s the author of numerous research papers, book chapters and books, including the Handbook of Microwave Technology for Food Applications. I asked Dr. Datta the same question and here was his reply:

“Based on my knowledge of the last 30-35 years of research literature on microwave heating, microwaves have only thermal effect, i.e., increase in temperature. There is no other “microwave” effect. Because microwaves heat non-uniformly, some places can heat a lot more and get charred and produce undesirable compounds. This, however, is just as true with any heating process, including hot air or grill. For the same reason of non-uniform heating, some locations in the food can heat a lot less and thus not destroy enough of pathogenic microorganisms (when this is an issue), causing a food safety problem, in much the same way as in conventional heating. Absolutely no negative health effects of microwave heating have been shown conclusively in all these years since microwave heating was started in the 50s.”

Can we finally close the case now on all the microwave oven alarmism and move on, or do we have to give away even more tin foil hat awards and start dispensing baloney detection kits?

References

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The effects of microwaves on the nutrient value of foods, Cross, GA and Fung, D., Critical Reviews in Food Science And Nutrition, Vol 16, No 4, pp 355-419, 1982, Department of Animal Sciences and Industry, Kansas State University

The effect of cooking methods on total phenolics and antioxidant activity of selected green vegetables, Turkman N et al, Food Chemistry 93(4), pp 713-718, 2005, Department of Food Engineering, Ankara University, Turkey.

Retention of nutrients in microwave-cooked foods, Klein BP. Bol Asoc Med P R., 1989 Jul;81(7):277-9.

Effects of Microwave Heating on the Loss of Vitamin B(12) in Foods, Wtanabe, F, et al, J Agric Food Chem. 1998 Jan 19;46(1):206-210, 1998, Department of Applied Biological Chemistry, Osaka Prefecture University, Japan.

Effects of microwave cooking conditions on bioactive compounds present in broccoli inflorescences, Lopez-berenguer C et al, J Agric food Chem, 55(24) pp 10001- 10007, 2007.

Comparative sub-chronic (13-wk) toxicity study in rats, Jonker, D., Food Chem Toxicol, 1995 Apr;33(4):245-56, TNO Nutrition and Food Research Institute, Zeist, The Netherlands.

Comparative study of the nutritive value of casein heated by microwave and conventionally, Jonker D, Jour Sci Food Agric, vol 59, pp 123-126, 1992.

Chronic, low-level (1.0 W/kg) exposure of mice prone to mammary cancer to 2450 MHz microwaves. Frei MR et al. Radiation research 150 (5): 568-76. doi:10.2307/3579874. 1998

Chronic exposure of cancer-prone mice to low-level 2450 MHz radiofrequency radiation. Frei, MR; et al.Bioelectromagnetics 19 (1): 20- 31. 1998

Survival of Listeria on raw whole chickens cooked in microwave ovens., Farber JM, D’Aoust JY, Diotte M, Sewell A, Daley E. J Food Prot. 1998 Nov;61(11):1465-9. Microbiology Research Division,  Health Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

Survival of Salmonella species in eggs poached using a microwave oven, Bates CJ, Spencer RC. J Hosp Infect. 1995 Feb;29(2):121-7.Department of Bacteriology, Floor F, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield, UK.

The effect of short-time microwave exposures on Escherichia coli O157:H7 inoculated onto chicken meat portions and whole chickens. Int J Food Microbiol. 2005 May 1;101(1):105-10. Epub 2004 Dec 25.Apostolou I, et al. Food Microbiology Unit, Medical School, University of Ioannina, Greece.

Effect of microwave heating on the migration of dioctyladipate and acetyltributylcitrate plasticizers from food-grade PVC and PVDC/PVC films into olive oil and water , Z Lebensm Unters Forsch. 1996 Apr;202(4):313-7. Dept of Chemistry, University of Ioannina, Greece.

Effect of microwave heating on the migration of dioctyl adipate and acetyltributyl citrate plasticizers from food grade PVC and PVDC/PVC films into ground meat, Badeka, European food research and technology, vol 208, no. 1, pp 69-73

Potential migration release of volatile compounds from plastic containers destined for food use in microwave ovens, Nerin, C., et al, Food Addit Contam, bol 19, no. 6, pp 594-601, 2002. Universidad de Zarogazo, Madrid, Spain.

Burns associated with the use of microwave ovens, Budd R., J Microw Power Electromagn Energy. 1992;27(3):160-3, Radiation Biology Branch, Center for Devices and Radiological Health, Food and Drug Administration, Rockville, MD.

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Severe burns resulting from an exploding teat on a bottle of infant formula milk heated in a microwave oven. Dixon JJ, et al, Burns. 1997 May;23(3):268-9. Frenchay Hospital, Bristol, UK.

Effects of microwave radiation on anti-infective factors in human milk, Quan R, et al, Pediatrics. 1992 Apr;89(4 Pt 1):667-9.Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine, CA.

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Heterocyclic amines: Mutagens/carcinogens produced during cooking of meat and fish. Sugimura T, et al, Cancer Sci. 2004 Apr;95(4):290-9. National Cancer Center, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0045, Japan.

Physiochemical changes in dietary fiber of green beans after repeated microwave treatments, Svanberg M et al, Food Science, 62:5, pp 1006-1010, 1997.

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