The title to this post may be a bit misleading, but if the
transitive property holds true, than you will get my point. I am currently finishing
a botany, plant “science”, class at my university. We used the semester to do
an experiment of our choosing. Being a fan of paleo [pronounced pall-ee-o] and
all things natural I wanted to choose a topic that would relate. My hypothesis
was that if we increase microwave radiation to plant soil then we will strip it
of micro nutrients and inhibit plant growth.
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Look at that 'lil guy |
I looked up a few sources and saw that microwave radiation
was a highly argued topic. Groups are split between those who say that
microwave radiation will only damage skin at high exposure, and others say that
microwaves are of the devil [paraphrasing]. I’ll give you my research, and my experiment
and then you can just decide for yourself.
Science & Sources & Stuff
I found five sources that supported my hypothesis
indirectly. I say indirectly because I couldn’t find enough articles saying
that microwaves would denature micronutrients. According to the FDA’s official
website microwaves are comparable to x rays, but should not be mistaken for
them. Essentially microwaves are baby x rays. In 1979 S.
W. Jordan performed an experiment on microwaves and their effect upon the mice
kidney. The more the mouse kidney was exposed to microwaves the more disfigured
the canals became. Dr. John W Gofman’s current research suggests that increased
exposure to micro waves results in Ischemic heart disease. In 2008, Evren Gölge used microwaves at different quantities on pine nuts to
determine the immediate effects of radiation on nutritional values. The data
showed that although the exterior and macronutrient values were unaffected, the
micronutrient values were negatively impacted. In other words Evren blasted the
nuts with intermittent bursts of microwaves and noticed no difference in appearance.
He also tested them and found no significant calorie, fat, protein, or carb
differences. However, when he tested the micronutrients, important nutrients
that are required in lower quantities, he found that some had been altered
drastically.
Experiment
& Conclusion
The
experiment was performed using 5 plants. A control, a plant with soil micro
waved for 1 min, a plant with soil micro waved for 2 min, a plant with soil
micro waved for 3 min, and a plant with soil micro waved for 5 min. The plant species used was expected to reach maturity before 21 days, which would be our final
day for measurements. At 21 days we found that our control plant had grown without
any incident. The plant in soil that was micro waved for 1 minute had grown,
developed primary leaves and reached maturity but died within days of
flowering. The 2 and 3 minute plants had just germinated (started growing) and
the 4 minute plant never sprouted. This showed me that the more I micro
waved the soil the less apt it was to even retain enough nutrients for primary
growth. This also showed that even 1 minute of microwaving could denature some
of the micronutrients in the soil that the plant truly depends on.
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This is less than 24 hours after the first flower bloomed |
I’m
People Not Plant
I understand that we don’t eat dirt, but I promise
that this relates to us. If my conclusion is correct, then we can now look at
our foods. Any food that we microwave may be stripped of micronutrients
that we assume we’re getting. If you do whole food challenges then you may want to avoid microwaving. If you take a multi-vitamin to make up for missing nutrients you can read my researched opinion here. I personally propose that we reduce our microwave
use and begin getting the nutrients we pay for. You can agree with me, or not,
either way just let me know what you think.
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After 21 days and plenty of water, not one seed could sprout. Soil microwaved for 4 minutes. |
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