Hello fellow steemians! As promised, here's another fun science fact updates from yours truly :)
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In a typical household, women usually prepares the food for her family. This is quite observed across the globe and wives even continue to fulfill this responsibility despite being pregnant. It is not exactly a no-no to cook your own meal but you should be very careful in choosing your fuel used for cooking.
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Many countries are still depended on solid fuels as source of energy and heat to cook food and this includes wood and charcoal. These materials are usually cheaper than other conventional cooking fuels and can even be free to areas where wood and twigs are abundant.
With the continuous use of these solid fuel, can you imagine that it is not just a potential cause for respiratory ailments to the person directly exposed to its smoke but also to the baby INSIDE her womb if she is pregnant?
Recent study by the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York explores the significant association between lung and respiratory ailments of babies with mothers exposed to household pollution especially due to cooking. They have involved families from Ghana and kept track on the conditions of women in their early pregnancies. A control group who were given the chance to use LPG gas stoves instead of their usual wood and charcoal.
Results? Those pregnant women exposed to household pollution from fuel wood and charcoal used for cooking had babies with reduced lung function one month after birth. babies who had higher risks: BABY GIRLS
"Women are commonly the primary cooks and continue to cook while pregnant, so a child's exposure to household air pollution begins in utero. Importantly, we know that lung function development progresses rapidly over gestation and alterations in lung development secondary to toxic maternal exposures impair lung development with lasting effects. Lung function at birth has been shown to predict lung function through adulthood and increase risk for future respiratory symptoms and disease." -Dr. Alison Lee, lead author
Though it is hard to get away with this type of cooking due to financial capabilities, maybe you should reconsider using these solid fuels when you are pregnant. At least spare your children from future lung ailments. As early as possible, invest on fuel with less carbon emission-- it will pay off I'm pretty sure. It's better to spend a little more for the cleaner fuel than to provide for medicines and hospital bills in the future.
Source:
In utero exposure to carbon monoxide increases infants' risk of poor lung function, Press Release
American Thoracic Society, ATS 2018 International Conference
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