J Epidemiol Community Health. 2009 Nov;63(11):887-92.
Solid fuel use and cooking practices as a major risk factor for ALRI mortality among African children.
Rehfuess EA, Tzala L, Best N, Briggs DJ, Joffe M.
Department of Medical Informatics, Biometry and Epidemiology, University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
rehfuess@ibe.med.uni-muenchen.de
BACKGROUND: Almost half of global child deaths due to acute lower respiratory infections (ALRIs) occur in sub-Saharan Africa, where three-quarters of the population cook with solid fuels. This study aims to quantify the impact of fuel type and cooking practices on childhood ALRI mortality in Africa, and to explore implications for public health interventions.
METHODS: Early-release World Health Survey data for the year 2003 were pooled for 16 African countries. Among 32,620 children born during the last 10 years, 1455 (4.46%) were reported to have died prior to their fifth birthday. Survival analysis was used to examine the impact of different cooking-related parameters on ALRI mortality, defined as cough accompanied by rapid breathing or chest indrawing based on maternal recall of symptoms prior to death.
RESULTS: Solid fuel use increases the risk of ALRI mortality with an adjusted hazard ratio of 2.35 (95% CI 1.22 to 4.52); this association grows stronger with increasing outcome specificity. Differences between households burning solid fuels on a well-ventilated stove and households relying on cleaner fuels are limited. In contrast, cooking with solid fuels in the absence of a chimney or hood is associated with an adjusted hazard ratio of 2.68 (1.38 to 5.23). Outdoor cooking is less harmful than indoor cooking but, overall, stove ventilation emerges as a more significant determinant of ALRI mortality.
CONCLUSIONS: This study shows substantial differences in ALRI mortality risk among African children in relation to cooking practices, and suggests that stove ventilation may be an important means of reducing indoor air pollution
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Indeed something has to be done if we are to avert the cases of children dying before the age of five. Due to poverty and other factors, most africans are used to solid fuel. For instance in case of malawian forests, we are experiencing rapid deforestation because of the over reliance on fuel wood.
Due to the over reliance to fuel wood and the massive detrsuction of our forests, there is now scarcity of commonly used fuel wood and as a result we are just taking anything that can burn as a source of energy regardless of the toxic smoke they might produce. this is indeed affecting our health and most importantly the health of the innocent children who are always behind the backs of their mothers who are most of the times busy cooking using such a staff.
It is therefore necessary to intervene at a right time before the problem posits itself into an alarming magnitude.