The World Health Organization is sounding the alarm around unsafe cooking practices that threaten the health of more than 2 billion people around the world.

What's happening?

Around a quarter of the global population uses unsafe indoor cooking methods such as open fires or kerosene-fueled stoves, according to the WHO. These techniques contribute to unhealthy indoor air pollution, which can have serious long-term health effects.

Most of the people who rely on polluting technologies for cooking are poor, and the issue is especially prevalent in rural communities. Because women often assume the cultural responsibility for cooking, they tend to have a higher risk of exposure to harmful cooking gases than men.

Developing countries with high population growth rates could greatly benefit from investment in clean cooking infrastructure, the WHO noted. "There is a particularly critical need for action in sub-Saharan Africa, where population growth has outpaced access to clean cooking, and 923 million people lacked access in 2022," it said.

Why are dirty cooking fuels concerning?

When people breathe in the smoke produced by dirty cooking fuels such as kerosene or coal, tiny pollution particles can enter their lungs and bloodstream, according to the WHO. This particulate matter inflames the lungs and makes it harder for blood to carry oxygen throughout the body, contributing to the risk of heart disease, stroke, respiratory infections, and lung cancer. This is one way that polluting cooking techniques contribute to 2.9 million deaths a year.

These fuels also contribute to the amount of planet-heating gas in the atmosphere. Inefficient stoves can emit substances like black carbon and methane. These short-lived climate pollutants, as described here by the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, don't stay in the atmosphere for very long, but they can have an even stronger effect on global warming than carbon dioxide.

In other words, unsafe cooking practices hurt people's health in the short term while also contributing to the long-term warming of the planet — and all of the diseases that are likely to accompany it.

What's being done about indoor air pollution?

The WHO recommended that countries make policy changes to ensure that people around the world have access to clean cooking technology by 2030. Cleaner alternatives include stoves fueled by solar power and other sources of electricity. Even natural gas stoves, which are linked to negative health effects, are preferable to fuel sources like kerosene and coal.

There are several organizations working to bring clean cookstoves to households around the world. The WHO also noted that better-ventilated houses and a broader switch to clean energy could help move us in the right direction. In the meantime, spreading awareness of this issue can deepen your friends' and family's understanding of threats to global health and motivate them to help work toward a greener future.

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