Exposure Contrasts of Women Aged 40-79 Years during the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network Randomized Controlled Trial

Ye W.; Campbell D.; Johnson M.; Balakrishnan K.; Peel J.L.; Steenland K.; Underhill L.J.; Rosa G.; Kirby M.A.; Díaz-Artiga A.; McCracken J.; Thompson L.M.; Clark M.L.; Waller L.A.; Chang H.H.; Wang J.; Dusabimana E.; Ndagijimana F.; Sambandam S.; Mukhopadhyay K.; Chiang M.; Hartinger S.M.; Nicolaou L.; Williams K.; Piedrahita R.; Kearns K.A.; Kremer J.; Ghosh A.; Rosenthal J.P.; Checkley W.; Clasen T.; Naeher L.; Pillarisetti A. · Environmental Science and Technology (2025) · DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.4c06337

Resumen

Exposure to household air pollution has been linked to adverse health outcomes among women aged 40-79. Little is known about how shifting from biomass cooking to a cleaner fuel like liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) could impact exposures for this population. We report 24-h exposures to particulate matter (PM2.5), black carbon (BC), and carbon monoxide (CO) among women aged 40 to <80 years participating in the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network trial. 209 participants were randomized to the intervention and received an LPG stove and continuous fuel supply; controls used biomass (n = 209). Exposures were measured up to six times; we used mixed-effects models to estimate differences between intervention and control groups. Preintervention exposures between groups were comparable; median postintervention exposures were 62% (76.3 vs 29.3 μg/m3), 73% (10.4 vs 2.8 μg/m3), and 57% (1.4 vs 0.6 ppm) lower for PM2.5, BC, and CO among LPG users than for controls. Reductions were similar across countries; 70% of PM2.5 exposures after intervention were below the annual WHO interim target I (IT-1) value of 35 μg/m3. We provide evidence that implementing an LPG intervention can reduce air pollution exposure over an 18-month period to at or below the annual WHO IT-1 guideline.

Instituciones: Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia