A review of microwave oven safety

The microwave leakage from current microwave ovens, which are manufactured to meet government emission standards, is reviewed. Typical leakage values imply exposure values well below the most conservative exposure standards in the world. A review of recent developments discloses increasingly stringent government regulation along with advances in techniques for suppression of microwave leakage. The nature of the leakage field is described and studies relating emission to exposure are reviewed. Field survey data are reviewed and it is found that the overwhelming majority of certified ovens in the field show leakage well below permissible limits with an increasing degree of certainty as time goes on. The conclusion is that microwave ovens are not only just as safe as they were in 1973 but they are being accepted as safe under essentially equivalent emission regulations in various countries including those in Eastern Europe.