The air pollution inside homes and health

More than half the world's population rely on dung, wood, crop waste or coal to meet its basic energy needs. Cooking and heating with solid fuels of this type using open fires or stoves without chimneys pollute the air indoors. This smoke in homes contains all sorts of pollutants harmful to health, including small particles of soot or dust that could penetrate deep into the lungs. The smoke in poorly ventilated dwellings may contain a hundred times more small particles than what is considered acceptable for outdoor air. The exposure of women and children is particularly important because they are the ones who spend the most time near the fireplace. Each year, the air pollution inside homes is responsible for the deaths of 1.6 million people - or 1 death every 20 seconds.