Answer Geek: Dangerous Microwaves?

<br> -- Q U E S T I O N: Is it true that it is dangerous to heat plain water in a Microwave oven? I have seen a lot of my co-workers do this. If there is some truth behind the stories that it is dangerous, I will at least let them know about this.

— Nikhil R.

Q U E S T I O N: When my European in-laws visit, they drink a lot of tea. They insist, however, that I don’t boil the water in the microwave because of the “dangerous radiation.” They also claim that water boiled in the microwave doesn’t taste as good and that it gets cold faster. I am playing the good host and using the stove, but I’d like to verify that these notions are absurd! — Ryan W.

A N S W E R: There’s an e-mail message on this very subject circulating around the Internet that looks suspiciously like one of the many hoaxes and urban legends that worm their way through cyberspace, causing otherwise rational people to believe, for example, Ericsson is giving away free cell phones and people have been killed by licking ATM envelopes coated with cyanide.

The microwave missive starts out like this: “I feel that the following is information that any one who uses a microwave oven to heat water should be made aware of.” It then goes on to tell the story of a “26-year-old son” who was severely burned when the cup of water he heated up in a microwave “blew up” in his face.

That sad tale about the maimed 26-year-old son has led many people to worry about the safety of using the microwave to boil water. But is it just another wacky piece of digital disinformation? Or is there something to it? Does boiling water in a microwave pose some danger?

Before we get to the answer, I have a question for Ryan. What’s up with you and your in-laws? I’m sensing quite a bit of hostility in your e-mail. I don’t have any specific advice for you — I’m the Answer Geek, not the Therapy Geek — but I’m wondering if maybe you and your wife could use a little bit of help sorting out this issue.