Cooking gas is important to our daily living, but studies show its effects on our health could be worse than staying in a polluted city. While most cooks love gas stoves to electric options, new research says that these gas produce nitrogen dioxide and harmful toxins common in traffic fumes. As a result, these substances can cause lung irritation and get into the bloodstream, increasing the risk of cancer, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s.
Families exposed to indoor pollution from cooking stoves
Older people and children are the most vulnerable to this kind of air pollution. According to one study, gas stokes increase indoor air pollutants considerably compared to pollution in busy streets.
Imperial College London’s professor Frank Kelly said that most children are exposed to more pollution when parents cook more than they experience in school. He added that if an asthmatic child is in the household, they are more likely to have more symptoms than they could have had if they didn’t have a stove.
According to another study conducted in the US, one in eight children with asthma is a result o exposure to cooking stove gas. Kelly explained that gas cookers are the main source of indoor pollution. The problem of indoor pollution is catching up with outdoor pollution due to the decline indoor use of measuring equipment.
Cooking gas exposes people to nitrogen dioxide and formaldehyde
A recent study of southern California residents reports that the use of gas stoves exposes consumers to high levels of formaldehyde and nitrogen dioxide exceeding outdoor pollution levels set by authorities. This problem is even worse for smaller houses that don’t have adequate ventilation.
Scientists argue that gas cookers could also be contributing to global warming. A recent study reported that methane from cooking stoves impacts the climate comparable with the CO2 emissions of around 500,000 gas-powered cars. In the EU, cooking gas could expose more than 100 million individuals to indoor air pollution. Non-profit group Clasp is calling for gas stoves to have health warning labels.
