Is this old news? Microwaving/freezing food in..

[Hotler]

plastic containers??? A friend emailed me about
Cancer News From Johns Hopkins
Dioxin chemicals released.
He didn't send any links.

Cancer update -- Johns Hopkins -- Cancer News from Johns Hopkins :

1. No plastic containers in microwave.

2. No water bottles in freezer.

3. No plastic wrap in microwave.
Johns Hopkins has recently sent this out in its newsletters.
This information is being circulated at Walter Reed Army Medical
Center as well.

[GOPisEvil]

1. Sounded like crap to me...and so it is..

http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/cookplastic.asp

[Hotler]

3. Thank you!..eom.

[GOPisEvil]

4. Anytime.

I have snopes bookmarked for just such occasions. :)

[Suich]

2. Since I'm guilty of all three,

I hope this is not true.

:hi:

[Maineiac]

5. Urban myth. Nothing kills plastic

not even 500 years buried at the bottom of a land fill.

[eyesroll]

6. Just don't microwave leftover mushroom gnocchi in the plastic container the waiter swears is safe.

x(

[xmas74]

7. It's a load of crap.

I remember this going around years ago, except it was from U of MN.

[Gormy Cuss]

8. The email is crap, but it's not advisable to microwave with plastics not rated for the microwave

nor is it a good idea to let standard kitchen plastic wrap rest on the food while microwaving. The containers may melt and both containers and wrap may leach components onto the food. Again, this pertains to plastic containers not rated as microwaveable and plastic wrap only.

http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2002/602_plastic.html

"It's true that substances used to make plastics can leach into food," says Edward Machuga, Ph.D., a consumer safety officer in the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. "But as part of the approval process, the FDA considers the amount of a substance expected to migrate into food and the toxicological concerns about the particular chemical." The agency has assessed migration levels of substances added to regulated plastics and has found the levels to be well within the margin of safety based on information available to the agency. The FDA will revisit its safety evaluation if new scientific information raises concerns.

One chemical called diethylhexyl adipate (DEHA) has received a lot of media attention. DEHA is a plasticizer, a substance added to some plastics to make them flexible. DEHA exposure may occur when eating certain foods wrapped in plastics, especially fatty foods such as meat and cheese. But the levels are very low. The levels of the plasticizer that might be consumed as a result of plastic film use are well below the levels showing no toxic effect in animal studies.

Other claims have asserted that plastics contain dioxins, a group of contaminants labeled as a "likely human carcinogen" by the Environmental Protection Agency. "The FDA has seen no evidence that plastic containers or films contain dioxins and knows of no reason why they would," Machuga says.

Machuga says that consumers should be sure to use any plastics for their intended purpose and in accordance with directions. If you don't find instructions for microwave use, you should use a different plate or container that you know is microwave-safe. Such containers are made to withstand high temperatures.