An analysis of effect of common domestic fuels on respiratory function.

Pulmonary function studies were carried out in 3318 healthy, nonsmoking asymptomatic housewives to evaluate the role of different cooking fuels in domestic use. The women used four different types of cooking fuels: biomass fuel, liquified petroleum gas (LPG), kerosene used in stoves, and a combination of two or more of these (mixed). Four parameters of ventilatory function (FVC, FEV1, PEFR and MMEF) were evaluated. A positive correlation was observed between all these parameters except PEFR with that of height, but a negative correlation was observed between the age, duration of cooking and exposure index. Mixed fuels and biomass fuels affected FVC values (F = 6.39, p = 0.0003) more adversely. Similar trend was observed for FEV1 also. Users of biomass fuel had the lowest mean value for PEFR. Small airways function represented by MMEF was the lowest in users of kerosene. In users of mixed fuels, there was a decline in FVC, FEV1 and PEFR, as the exposure increased. Thus, it is concluded that, mixed fuel has more deleterious effects on pulmonary function than other fuels.