Solid Fuel Use for Household Cooking: Country and Regional Estimates for 1980-2010.

May 21, 2013 · 0 comments

Environ Health Perspect. 2013 May 3.

Solid Fuel Use for Household Cooking: Country and Regional Estimates for 1980-2010.

Bonjour S, Adair-Rohani H, Wolf J, Bruce NG, Mehta S, Prüss-Ustün A, Lahiff M, Rehfuess EA, Mishra V, Smith KR.

Department of Public Health and Environment, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland.

BACKGROUND: Exposure to household air pollution resulting from cooking with solid fuels in simple stoves is a major health risk. Modelling reliable estimates of solid fuel use is needed for monitoring trends and informing policy.

OBJECTIVES: We estimated annual trends in the population using solid fuels for the revision of the disease burden attributable to household air pollution for the Global Burden of Disease 2010 project, and for international reporting purposes.

METHODS: A multilevel model was developed based on national survey data on primary cooking fuel.

RESULTS: The proportion of households relying mainly on solid fuels for cooking has decreased from 62% (95% CI: 58, 66) to 41% (95% CI: 37, 44) between 1980 and 2010. Yet due to population growth, the actual number of people exposed has remained stable at around 2.8 billion during three decades. Solid fuel use is most prevalent in Africa and South East Asia where more than 60% of households cook with solid fuels. In other regions, primary solid fuel use ranges from almost 50% in the Western Pacific, to one third in Eastern Mediterranean and less than 20% in the Americas and Europe.

CONCLUSION: Multilevel modelling is a suitable technique to derive reliable solid fuel use estimates. Worldwide, the proportion of households cooking mainly with solid fuels is decreasing. The absolute number of people using solid fuels, however, is remaining steady globally and increasing in some regions. Surveys require enhancement to better capture the health implications of new technologies and multiple fuel use.

Bookmark and Share

Leave a Comment

Previous post:

Next post: