<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

One of our celiac members is a PR person at our local American Cancer
Society.  I sent her some text from
a posting on the Listserv and asked her opinion.  This material is what
she sent.  It does not seem that under
ordinary conditions we need to worry.

MICROWAVING PLASTIC                                    From the American
Cancer Society

Rumor:

Anyone who's heated something up in the microwave has probably heard or
wondered about possible health effects. One email exploits this common
fear, by quoting a "Dr. Edward Fujimoto from Castle Hospital" who was
heard on "Channel 2 this morning" warning that heating plastic in the
microwave releases toxins, like dioxin and DEHA. This apparently all
came about when Dr. Fujimoto, a genuine person, appeared on KHON-TV in
Honolulu in January 2002 to discuss the issue.

Fact:

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says DEHA may leach into foods
wrapped in plastics, especially fatty foods such as meat and cheese. But
the levels are very low. The levels of DEHA that might be consumed as a
result of plastic film use are well below levels showing no toxic effect
in animal studies. As for dioxin, the FDA says it "has seen no evidence
that plastic containers or films contain dioxins and knows of no reason
why they would."



Janet Rinehart, Chairman
Houston Celiac Support Group
www.houstonceliacs.org

* Visit the Celiac Web Page at www.enabling.org/ia/celiac/index.html *