What Are the Dangers of Puncturing a Microwave Oven?

Microwaves and Microwave Radiation

• Microwave radiation has a similar wavelength to radiation produced by television, radio waves, electric shavers, radar and other technology. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the types of radiation that are known to harm humans, such as X-rays and nuclear radiation, are one million times more powerful than microwaves. Still, microwave radiation in extremely high doses can be harmful to humans, so federal regulatory agencies establish the maximum amounts of radiation that a microwave can produce under normal usage and ban the sale of any microwaves that produce more.

Physical Damage to Radiation

• Federal regulations assume that the microwave is not damaged and is in full working order. Microwave ovens are designed to keep microwave radiation inside the microwave at all times, so if a part of the microwave is damaged or faulty -- for example, if the microwave's door is punctured or if the door seal is damaged -- microwave radiation could potentially leak out while foods are cooked.

Potential Hazards

• Even if a microwave oven is punctured or otherwise damaged in a manner that allows radiation to leak out of the inside of the oven, rarely will enough radiation leak out to actually create a health hazard. Dewey D. Sprague of the University of California Berkeley Office of Radiation Safety only knew of two cases in which a microwave was damaged enough to leak a level of radiation that was above federally-mandated safety levels; in both cases, the microwave was very severely damaged.

Preventing Hazards

• One of the easiest ways to avoid any potential dangers associated with microwave radiation is to simply never use a microwave that has been punctured or damaged in any way. Microwaves are so pervasive that they are relatively inexpensive to replace when damaged. Get your microwave inspected regularly for any puncturing or damage that you may not notice on your own if you are particularly concerned about radiation leakage, even though small punctures and openings likely will not leak enough radiation to be dangerous.