A new study shows that propane and gas stones significantly boost nitrogen dioxide exposure in rooms in a home. These levels are considered unsafe and could yield harmful health effects for millions of people across the US.
Nitrogen Dioxide Exposure
The World Health Organization (WHO) has set exposure guidelines for different types of air pollution. Nitrogen dioxide, specifically, is a highly reactive gas that enters the air through fuel burning. It typically forms from vehicle, power plant, and off-road equipment emissions.
Inhaling air with high nitrogen dioxide concentrations could lead to respiratory irritations. Short-term exposure could exacerbate respiratory conditions, whereas prolonged exposure could contribute to the development of certain conditions, such as asthma. Chronic exposure could also boost respiratory infection susceptibility.
Gas Stoves Fueling Nitrogen Dioxide Exposure to Unsafe Levels
Now, a new study was able to discover that people reach up to 75% of the annual nitrogen dioxide limit by using a gas stove. Interestingly, electric stoves did not lead to any nitrogen dioxide emissions.
These findings were noted in the "Nitrogen dioxide exposure, health outcomes, and associated demographic disparities due to gas and propane combustion by U.S. stoves" study.
Dr. Kari Nadeau, a co-author of the study and the environmental health department chair of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, explains that there is no safe exposure amount to the toxicants produced by gas, propane, or any fossil fuels. Dr. Nadeau adds that humans were not meant to breathe in such toxicants.
According to the US Energy Information Administration, over one-third of US households, equivalent to almost 50 million, own a propane or gas stove.
However, a house's layout, size, and ventilation, as well as certain behaviors, such as cooking patterns, could impact nitrogen dioxide exposure levels from gas stoves. Because of this, individuals from disadvantaged communities are at a higher risk of experiencing the negative health effects associated with nitrogen dioxide exposure.
Individuals living in homes under 800 square feet have four times higher nitrogen dioxide exposure from gas stoves than people who live in residences over 3,000 square feet.
Researcher Yannai Kashtan, the study's lead author from Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability, explains that due to present-day and historical discrimination, exposure and disparity by housing size show up as exposure and disparities by ethnic group, race, and income.
For Hispanic, Black, and American Indian individuals in the US, nitrogen dioxide exposure goes beyond the benchmark of the WHO just from gas stove usage. This excludes contributions made from outdoor air.
For American Indian people, levels of exposure are 60% higher than average. For Hispanic and Black people in the US, exposure is 20% higher compared to average.
The researchers also found that the exposure impacts of a gas stove are not limited to those who cook the most or spend the most time in the kitchen. In tested bedrooms, nitrogen dioxide concentrations exceeded the WHO's one-hour exposure guideline within 25 minutes of cooking.
Rob Jackson, an Earth system science professor at Stanford, a senior fellow from the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment and Precourt Institute for Energy, and the study's principal investigator explains that the measured pollution moves from the kitchen to bedrooms rapidly and stays in the air for hours.
Jackson says that the cooks bear the greatest burden, though everyone in the home is in danger of inhaling pollution.
The researchers examined nitrogen dioxide concentrations and emissions in over 100 homes in five states. The findings were then combined with national demographic data to examine potential impacts and exposures throughout the US.
Scientists generally estimate that chronic nitrogen dioxide exposure due to gas stoves caused roughly 50,000 of the current pediatric asthma cases in the US. Such estimates could reach up to 200,000 pediatric asthma cases if other factors are considered. The researchers also estimate that roughly 19,000 premature deaths could be attributed to chronic nitrogen dioxide exposure due to gas stoves.
Experts recommend minimizing cooking using gas stoves. The pollution is from its flames. Hence, cooking with lower heat and shorter periods could reduce emissions. Jackson also says that the key is to make use of less gas.
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