Advanced imaging with CT shows that people who cook with biomass fuels like wood are at risk of suffering considerable damage to their lungs from breathing in dangerous concentrations of pollutants and bacterial toxins, according to a study.
The study has been presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
Approximately 3 billion people around the world cook with biomass, such as wood or dried brush.
Pollutants from cooking with biomass are a major contributor to the estimated 4 million deaths a year from household air pollution related illness.
While public health initiatives have tried to provide support to transition from biomass fuels to cleaner-burning liquefied petroleum gas as a fuel source, a significant number of homes continue to use biomass fuels.
Financial constraints and a reluctance to change established habits are factors, combined with a lack of information on the impact of biomass smoke on lung health.
The analysis showed that the ones who cooked with wood biomass were exposed to greater concentrations of pollutants and bacterial endotoxins compared to liquefied petroleum gas users.