How should we view Microwave ovens & heating food in plastic containers...?

Question

Plastic is made from petroleum, and oil refineries emit cancer-causing Benzene (these 2 we know)... when you heat plastic, particles enter the liquid/food (at acceptable levels, who knows?)... like bottled water, being driven to a store near you in alum. trucks, driving in the hot sunshine, etc. etc. So? what happens when you re-heat your Chinese food, etc? (Thinking aloud here, to see who's got ideas...)

Answer 1

Plastics are usually polymers of petroleum based liquids or gases. These are mostly harmless to the body and there are many different types of plastics, like PVC (poly(vinyl chloride)), soda bottles contain PET (poly(ethylene tetrapthylate), polyethylene (grocery bags), etc. So there are many types of plastics that overall did at one time come from "dangerous" chemicals within crude oil or natural gas.

Overall, there are small polymers (called oligomers) which can exist in some food grade plastics and these oligomers can acquire some of the characteristics of their "dangerous" base chemical. These are few and far between and are highly regulated by the US and EU due to their potentially harmful effects in high concentrations.

So the moral of the story: plastics are not harmful. Just make sure you get them within the US or EU.

Answer 2

Though some molecules will enter your food from the plastic (like pthalates) it will never be at a high enough concentration to cause health issues. Also, it will be highly unlikely to find benzene in the plastic.

Answer 3

People much smarter than you think of these things and test for them before the products ever get put on the market. You have much better things to think about and risks to reduce. Smoking? Drinking? Unprotected sex? Driving while talking on your cell phone? So many more (and better) things to worry about.