At least one in eight cases of asthma in children in the US is as a result of air pollution brought on by cooking on gas stoves, according to new research. Gas stoves have long been marketed as the cleanest and most efficient way to cook, with around a third of American households having a gas stove in their kitchens. But this latest findings have pushed the government to consider banning the sale of gas cookers. How exactly are gas stoves harmful?
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Air pollutant
The recent research is not the first to reveal the negative health implications of using gas cookers. According to the Guardian, previous studies have shown that this method of cooking emits chemicals and carcinogens even while turned off. These chemicals are believed to create levels of pollution indoor that are higher than the air contamination caused by vehicular traffic and heavy industry.
Now, a new study has established that children who are exposed to the chemicals emitted from gas stoves have a higher risk of developing asthma. In fact, the Guardian piece indicated, the researchers found that 12.7% of all current cases of childhood asthma in the US are due to the use of gas stoves.
Like second hand smoking
Brady Seals, manager of the carbon free buildings program at RMI who undertook the research with epidemiologists in the US and Australia, said:
We knew this was a problem but we didn’t know how bad. This study shows that if we got rid of gas stoves we would prevent 12.7% of childhood asthma cases, which I think most people would want to do.
Seals added that the prevalence of asthma due to gas stoves is similar to the amount of asthma caused by second hand smoking, which she called ‘eye popping’.
The research was published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.
Sources used:
The Guardian: One in eight cases of asthma in US kids caused by gas stove pollution – study
