Air Pollution in Rural Households Due to Solid Biomass Fuel Use and Its Health Impacts

Air pollution has become a major environmental health risk factor in lower- and middle-income countries. There are several policies and regulations to control outdoor air pollution, but household air pollution is ignored. Children, elderly, and women, who spend most of their time in the indoor environment are at the higher risks of exposure due to the uses of solid biomass fuels for household energy. The exposure to toxic household air pollutants from incomplete combustion of solid biomass fuels has been linked with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, acute lower respiratory infections, lung cancer, stroke, ischaemic heart disease, etc. However, evidence from countries where household air pollution has the highest adverse impact, lacks to convince the policymakers. Hence, there is a need to focus on personal exposure assessment to establish the causal effect relationship. Recently, several governments in Asia, including India, have taken initiatives to curb the use of solid biomass fuels. This provides an opportunity to examine the benefits of better health and the environment.