Can a microwave oven heat up disposable lunch boxes?

Due to busy work, many friends choose to cook more rice for breakfast and put it directly in the microwave to heat it at noon. However, since the temperature of the microwave oven is too high and it is in a sealed environment, putting unsafe lunch boxes in the microwave oven may cause the toxins inside to dissolve under high temperature and affect human health. Therefore, it is very important to choose a safe lunch box when heating in the microwave.

There are many types of microwave utensils, some of which are suitable for use in the microwave, some are not, and some may even be harmful to your health. Therefore, consumers should carefully select microwave oven utensils when purchasing them. The most important thing is to grasp the three factors: ① strong penetration of the microwave oven, ② high temperature resistance, and ③ compliance with food hygiene requirements.

1. Glassware: including utensils made of borosilicate glass, microcrystalline glass, and titanium oxide crystalline glass. Because of their good microwave penetration, stable physical and chemical properties, and high temperature resistance (up to 500 degrees Celsius or even 1000 degrees Celsius), they are suitable for long-term use in microwave ovens. Glasses, milk bottles and feeding bottles made of ordinary glass are only suitable for short-term heating in the microwave, about 3 minutes. If heated for a long time, it is easy to crack. Products made of carved glass, tempered glass, and crystal glass are not suitable for use in microwave ovens because they have uneven thickness and will crack when cooking oily foods.

2. Ceramic ware: There are heat-resistant ceramics and ordinary ceramics. Pots, plates and other utensils made of heat-resistant ceramics are suitable for long-term use in the microwave, while ordinary ceramic utensils can only be used for short-term heating. It is particularly important to note that ceramic utensils containing gold or silver threads will produce sparks when used in a microwave oven, so they should not be used.

3. Plastic containers: Various containers made of polypropylene, polypropylene resin, composite polypropylene, polysulfone and other materials can withstand temperatures above 120 degrees Celsius and can be used for microwave heating. The utensils made of PET resin and polyester materials can withstand temperatures above 220 degrees Celsius and can be used for barbecue. Cling film is also a plastic product: one is ordinary cling film, which can be used when heating vegetables; the other is microwave-safe cling film, which can be used to heat meat, poultry, and sugary foods. As for heat-inresistant utensils such as polyethylene, styrene, phenol, melamine, etc., they must not be used in the microwave, because these materials can absorb microwaves and will melt when heated. Some will even emit toxins and odors, which are harmful to human health.

4. Metal utensils: All kinds of utensils made of metal materials such as aluminum, stainless steel, enamel, etc. are not suitable for use in microwave ovens because microwaves cannot penetrate them and the food inside cannot be heated.

There are many types of lunch boxes, and many materials will release a large amount of toxins after being exposed to high temperatures. This type of lunch box is not suitable for heating in a microwave oven, especially the disposable lunch boxes made of common plastic products. It is best not to put them in a microwave oven. If you want to heat them in a microwave oven, you can use the above methods to choose a safer lunch box.