[Stoves] Nepali deaths from cooking fire smoke

[Crispin Pemberton-Pigott]

Dear Friends

The GACC newsletter has an article that starts thus:

A new clean cooking program<http://www.globalproblems-globalsolutions.org/site/R?i=VA0zBeL6F3JoqKgRVPjhkg> is working to improve public health in Nepal, where household air pollution accounts for over 18,000 deaths each year.

‎Do they mean premature deaths?

Household air pollution includes quite a lot of contributing factors. Are these deaths accompanied by a death certificate saying 'air pollution' as a cause? A contributing cause?

From what we have learned on this list it seems unlikely 18,000 people are killed each year by indoor air pollution in Nepal. I am not saying it could be true, it just seems really unlikely that this is a fact.

I have been reviewing the results of the health study that paralleled the Kyrgyzstan Stove Pilot this past winter. There are two sets of dramatic changes: the reduction in symptoms related to inhalation of smoke and CO, and this related to a higher indoor temperature.

Looking through the list, the medical issues or hints of them related to temperature are very noticeable: runny nose and bronchitis are two that are related to chronic under-heating. What we see is that with a five degree higher indoor temperature these symptoms of 'cold' pretty much disappear.

Nepal is largely very cold in winter. 'Deaths' ‎premature or otherwise are surely far more commonly attributable to chronic under-heating, compared with IAQ, not so?

I think there is much to glean from the Fresh Air study in Kyrgyzstan as most confounding factors are not present.

Regards
Crispin
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