Just a quick search on the internet to find websites and blogs to ensure that the use of micro - waves is bad for your health and results in the loss of vitamins and nutrients from food.
But this idea that the microwave is worse than other forms of cooking has no scientific basis, explains the BBC program Trust Me, I'm a Doctor.
The microwave cooks food using energy waves similar to radio but shorter.
Selective, these waves affect mainly water and other asymmetric molecules electrically: positively charged at one end and negatively at the other.
Microwaves cause these molecules to vibrate and generate heat, which quickly spreads to nearby molecules to heat and cook food.
This process can affect the vitamins and nutrients in food, but these changes are not exclusive to the microwave, but are the result of the heating process.
When food is heated, some vitamins - like C - break down, explains Harvard University in the United States on its website on medicine and health.
But this happens regardless of whether the food is heated in a conventional oven, on the stove or in the microwave.
Proteins also “denaturalize” (that is, they decompose and sometimes lose their properties) when they are heated, by any means.
But as preparation times are shorter, microwave cooking does help to preserve vitamin C and other nutrients.
Cooking with water
Food nutrients are also lost when food is cooked with water.
Several scientific studies have concluded that when boiling vegetables, a good part of their nutrients is released into the water.
Vitamin C and many of the B vitamins, such as B6 and B12, are more vulnerable because they are water-soluble.
And this water is not normally used, but discarded - which also causes nutrients to be lost.
The loss of nutrients during boiling is greater than in other techniques, such as microwave, frying or steam.
So the best way to retain vitamins and nutrients in food when cooking them is to use short times, which limit exposure to heat, and a cooking method that uses less liquid.
An article published in 2009 in the Journal of Food Science concluded, for example, that the microwave maintains better levels of antioxidants in foods such as beans, asparagus and onions than boiling, cooking in a pressure cooker or oven.
But if what worries you most is maintaining the nutritional value of food, steaming is best.
In addition, there are other steps you can take to conserve food's nutritional value to the fullest.
Useful advice to prevent nutrient loss when cooking:
Peel and cut food just before preparing or consuming
Wash quickly before cooking
Use cooking methods in which water and food come into contact as little as possible
Wait for the water to boil completely to submerge the food, as this will reduce the cooking time required
Cooking vegetables al dente and cooling them after cooking, to preserve their vitamins
Use the water from cooked vegetables to make other foods, such as soups
Avoid storing fruits and vegetables for a long time in the refrigerator
Add vinegar or lemon juice, which contribute to the preservation of vitamins and absorption of some minerals, such as iron