Health risks of Kitchen stoves: bone of contention

A contentious research associating natural gas cooking with childhood asthma cases is currently in the spotlight. The peer-reviewed US study in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is based on a review of 41 previous studies and 12.7 percent of US childhood asthma cases to gas cooking. However, an expert who was part of the study has claimed that gas is a healthier cooking option compared to #wood, #charcoal, and #coal, which cause 3.2 million deaths every year from household air pollution, predominantly in developing countries.

World Health Organization has already cautioned on the pollutant #nitrogendioxide which is emitted from the burning of gas, and which is known to cause #asthma and other respiratory conditions. Many government and public bodies have expressed concern following the study findings. On the other hand, researchers working towards the abolition of harmful solid cooking fuels such as #wood, #coal, and #charcoal have stated that the study merits a deeper research ahead of making definitive claims.

• A research commissioned by the #worldhealthorganization to summarise the effects of different fuels for cooking and heating have hinted at a "substantial reduction in risk" from switching to gas and terminating the use of solid fuels and #kerosene
• A few experts agree that gas is better than wood or coal, but they do point out that it not clean
• As the debate continues, home owners have no idea about the nature and the lead time of the decisive verdict. They continue to be clueless amid a blazing fire of conflicting conjectures

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