Solid fuel use increases risk of death in rural China: research

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Chinese researchers have found that using solid fuels for cooking and heating may generate a large amount of pollutants that can increase the risk of cardiovascular and decrease life expectancy.

The research was based on a seven-year study (2008-2014) involving 270,000 rural residents in Sichuan, Gansu, Henan, Zhejiang, and Hunan provinces, covering areas in southwest, northwest, central and east China.

The average age of participants was 51, and 59 percent of them were women.

Researchers found that people using solid fuels for cooking, including wood, coal, crop and animal waste, had greater risks of cardiovascular and all-cause mortality, increasing by 20 percent and 11 percent respectively compared with those using clean fuels, such as gas and electricity.

Among those who burned solid fuels for heating, all-cause mortality increased by 14 percent, and chances of death due to cardiovascular diseases increased by 29 percent. Also, it is found that the longer they used solid fuels, the greater the risks of death were.

The risk was lower for those who had previously switched to clean fuels and those who used ventilated stoves.

The research, led by Wu Tangchun from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and Li Liming from Peking University, was published last month in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Source(s): Xinhua News Agency