Population Attributable Fraction of Gas Stoves and Childhood Asthma in the United States

Talor Gruenwald, Brady A. Seals, Luke D. Knibbs, H. Dean Hosgood

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

16 Scopus citations

Abstract

Indoor gas stove use for cooking is associated with an increased risk of current asthma among children and is prevalent in 35% of households in the United States (US). The population-level implications of gas cooking are largely unrecognized. We quantified the population attributable fraction (PAF) for gas stove use and current childhood asthma in the US. Effect sizes previously reported by meta-analyses for current asthma (Odds Ratio = 1.34, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = 1.12–1.57) were utilized in the PAF estimations. The proportion of children (<18 years old) exposed to gas stoves was obtained from the American Housing Survey for the US, and states with available data (n = 9). We found that 12.7% (95% CI = 6.3–19.3%) of current childhood asthma in the US is attributable to gas stove use. The proportion of childhood asthma that could be theoretically prevented if gas stove use was not present (e.g., state-specific PAFs) varied by state (Illinois = 21.1%; California = 20.1%; New York = 18.8%; Massachusetts = 15.4%; Pennsylvania = 13.5%). Our results quantify the US public health burden attributed to gas stove use and childhood asthma. Further research is needed to quantify the burden experienced at the county levels, as well as the impacts of implementing mitigation strategies through intervention studies.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number75
JournalInternational journal of environmental research and public health
Volume20
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2023

Keywords

  • asthma
  • burden
  • children
  • cooking
  • current
  • gas
  • respiratory
  • stove
  • use

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Pollution
  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
  • Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Population Attributable Fraction of Gas Stoves and Childhood Asthma in the United States'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this