Traditional cooking practices in northeast pose more health risks than LPG

An IIT Mandi study found that traditional cooking practices that use biomass fuel in northeast Indian states lead to alarming health risks compared to LPG-using kitchens

Despite technological advancements, over 50 per cent of the rural population in northeastern India (Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and Meghalaya) still rely on traditional solid fuels like firewood and mixed biomass for cooking. This leads to the emission of significant pollutants into the kitchen air, posing health risks to inhabitants, according to a recent research conducted in collaboration between the Indian Institute of Technology Mandi (IIT Mandi), Institut National de Recherche et de Sécurité (INRS), France, and the National Physical Laboratory (CSIR-NPL), India.

The research aimed to assess the severity and health implications of using biomass cooking fuel compared to LPG-based cooking in rural kitchens across three Northeast Indian states.

Research methodology 

The research team measured size-resolved concentrations of aerosols and toxic trace metals, as well as carcinogenic organic substances, during cooking with firewood, mixed biomass, and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG). They analysed the deposition patterns of these particles in the human respiratory system and calculated the resulting inhalation exposure.

Using the 'Potential Years of Life Lost' (PYLL) metric, the researchers estimated the health impact on the rural NE Indian population, focusing on respiratory diseases such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Pneumonia, and various cancers. The study revealed significantly higher exposure to harmful aerosols and increased disease burdens among those using firewood and mixed biomass compared to LPG users.

Dr Sayantan Sarkar, assistant professor at the School of Civil & Environmental Engineering, IIT Mandi, said, "Our study combines real-world aerosol measurements in rural kitchens with dosimetry modelling to robustly estimate the impact of cooking emissions on the respiratory tract. It is the first effort to estimate disease burdens caused by exposure to indoor cooking emissions in India in terms of potential years of life lost. The study also measures for the first time the potential for oxidative stress resulting from such exposure in the Indian context and quantifies the additional risk that biomass users face compared to those who use the cleaner alternative LPG."

Key findings

• Exposure to harmful aerosols was 2-19 times higher in firewood/biomass-using kitchens compared to LPG-using kitchens.
• The fraction of the population using firewood and mixed biomass faced 2-57 times higher disease burdens than LPG users.
• The potential for oxidative stress, leading to damaged cells, proteins, and DNA, was 4-5 times higher among biomass users compared to LPG users.

Recommendations of study

The research highlighted the urgent need for rural communities in Northeast India to transition to cleaner cooking methods, with recommendations including improving LPG accessibility, enhancing cookstove programs, raising awareness, funding local solutions, and organising health camps for rural women.