Household air pollution could make children grow shorter in sub-Saharan Africa; but can households help stem the tide on their own?

Abstract

Recently, there has been growing research interest in the influence of household air pollution on child health. Despite the increasing advocacy for households to switch from the use of polluting cooking fuels due to climate change and health-related concerns, the practice is still prevalent in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The intensity of household air pollution exposure and its influence on child stunting and wasting of children is an important, but understudied, cause for public health concern. Identifying the health effects of polluting fuels, for instance, could stimulate a speedy transition to clean energy. This study, therefore, examines the association between the intensity of household air pollution exposure and child stunting and wasting of children using data from the most recent demographic and health surveys (DHS) from 33 countries in SSA using linear probability modeling. Results show that high levels of intensity of air pollution within households are associated with increased stunting probability of 2.9% − 3.2%. The findings highlight a potential negligible cost measure households can adopt to limit the intensity of pollution they are exposed to and consequently, to reduce the faltering growth in children.