Clean and sustainable household energy and appliances, for cooking, heating and lighting can improve health, increase productivity, reduce poverty and protect the environment while addressing air pollution.
The Lancet Global Health Volume 9, ISSUE 3, e361-e365, March 01, 2021
The public health community has tried for decades to show, through evidence-based research, that safe water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) and clean cooking fuels that reduce household air pollution are essential to safeguard he...alth and save lives in low-income and middle-income countries. In the past 40 decades, there have been many innovations in the development of low-cost and efficacious technologies for WASH and household air pollution, but many of these technologies have been associated with disappointing health outcomes, often because low-income households have either not adopted, or inconsistently adopted, these technologies.
more
According to the 2016 Nepal Demographic and Health Survey, 66% of Nepali households use mainly solid fuel for cooking on inefficient stoves. Incomplete fuel combustion of solid fuels emits greenhouse gases and harmful smoke, contributing to climate change, forest degradation, ill health and preventa...ble deaths. Further, the physical burden and time necessary to collect wood for fuel is borne primarily by women and children, thus compromising their productive time, such as social activities and education.
more
Exposure to household air pollution (HAP) is one of the greatest environmental risks to human health worldwide. Policies to accelerate the adoption of clean cooking, heating and lighting are essential for reducing HAP and the enormous burden of disease it causes and for lowering climate-warming emis...sions and achieving other urgent societal priorities.
more
Almost the entire Rwandan population (98.5%) relies on polluting fuels, particularly firewood and charcoal, for cooking. Access to clean energy such as electricity is still limited. In 2022, 70% of the population lived in towns and villages that have electricity – 49% from the national grid and 21...% from off-grid (mainly solar) systems. When access is defined as connection and use of households to electricity, an estimated 47% of households had access in 2020, representing 86% of the urban population but only 38% of the rural population.
more
The WHO fact sheet on household air pollution highlights that around 2.1 billion people rely on solid fuels like wood and coal for cooking, using open fires or inefficient stoves. This leads to severe indoor air pollution, contributing to about 3.2 million premature deaths each year, including over ...237,000 children under five. Health impacts include strokes, heart disease, COPD, and lung cancer. Women and children are particularly affected due to their roles in cooking and fuel gathering. WHO calls for the adoption of clean energy solutions, such as electricity and solar power, to mitigate the health risks associated with household air pollution.
more
The WHO fact sheet on household air pollution highlights that around 2.1 billion people rely on solid fuels like wood and coal for cooking, using open fires or inefficient stoves. This leads to severe indoor air pollution, contributing to about 3.2 million premature deaths each year, including over ...237,000 children under five. Health impacts include strokes, heart disease, COPD, and lung cancer. Women and children are particularly affected due to their roles in cooking and fuel gathering. WHO calls for the adoption of clean energy solutions, such as electricity and solar power, to mitigate the health risks associated with household air pollution.
more
The WHO fact sheet on household air pollution highlights that around 2.1 billion people rely on solid fuels like wood and coal for cooking, using open fires or inefficient stoves. This leads to severe indoor air pollution, contributing to about 3.2 million premature deaths each year, including over ...237,000 children under five. Health impacts include strokes, heart disease, COPD, and lung cancer. Women and children are particularly affected due to their roles in cooking and fuel gathering. WHO calls for the adoption of clean energy solutions, such as electricity and solar power, to mitigate the health risks associated with household air pollution.
more
The WHO fact sheet on household air pollution highlights that around 2.1 billion people rely on solid fuels like wood and coal for cooking, using open fires or inefficient stoves. This leads to severe indoor air pollution, contributing to about 3.2 million premature deaths each year, including over ...237,000 children under five. Health impacts include strokes, heart disease, COPD, and lung cancer. Women and children are particularly affected due to their roles in cooking and fuel gathering. WHO calls for the adoption of clean energy solutions, such as electricity and solar power, to mitigate the health risks associated with household air pollution.
more
Indoor air pollution is one of the world's largest environmental problems – particularly for the poorest in the world, who often do not have access to clean fuels for cooking.The Global Burden of Disease is a major global study on the causes and risk factors for death and disease. The study estima...tes of the annual number of deaths attributed to a wide range of risk factors are shown here. This chart is shown for the global total but can be explored for any country or region using the "change country or region" toggle.
more
The document "Proteksyon Maladi" focuses on preventing waterborne and hygiene-related diseases through practical measures. It emphasizes the importance of personal hygiene, including washing hands with soap and clean water before eating, after using the toilet, and during food preparation. Maintaini...ng personal cleanliness is highlighted as a key step in preventing the spread of diseases.
Water safety is another critical focus, with recommendations to use treated or boiled water for drinking and cooking and to store water in clean, covered containers to prevent contamination. The document also addresses sanitation, encouraging the construction and maintenance of latrines to eliminate open defecation and promoting proper waste disposal to protect the environment and water sources.
Overall, the document serves as an educational resource, providing simple and effective strategies for communities to reduce the risk of diseases and improve public health through better hygiene, sanitation, and water safety practices.
more
The "Hygiene Awareness Manual" focuses on promoting improved hygiene practices within communities, emphasizing personal and household hygiene, water safety, and environmental health. It highlights the importance of handwashing, oral hygiene, and maintaining cleanliness of the skin and clothing as ke...y aspects of personal and family hygiene. Specific practices such as regular bathing and wearing clean clothes are also emphasized.
For household hygiene, the manual provides guidance on safe food preparation and storage, as well as keeping living spaces, kitchens, and latrines clean to prevent contamination. It also addresses water safety, emphasizing the need to store water in clean containers, treat it for safe consumption, and dispose of wastewater properly to avoid environmental contamination.
The manual underscores the significance of balanced nutrition and food safety, offering guidelines for cooking and preserving food to reduce health risks. It also delves into disease prevention, explaining the causes and transmission of waterborne and hygiene-related diseases, such as cholera and dysentery, and outlining effective methods to prevent them through proper sanitation and hygiene.
This comprehensive guide serves as a practical resource for community health workers and households, aiming to foster better hygiene practices, prevent diseases, and enhance overall health and well-being.
more
The PDF "Vamos proteger-nos da Cólera" provides comprehensive guidance on cholera prevention and response strategies, particularly for use in community health settings. It emphasizes the importance of safe water use by treating water with bleach, boiling it for at least 5 minutes, or using purifica...tion tablets like Aquatabs. Handwashing is highlighted as a key measure, especially after using the latrine, before preparing food, and before eating. Sanitation practices include using and maintaining clean latrines or, if unavailable, burying feces far from homes and water sources.
The document also addresses diarrhea treatment, recommending the preparation and use of Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) with added zinc for effective recovery. It encourages breastfeeding for infants with diarrhea and stresses the importance of cooking food thoroughly, keeping it covered, and ensuring all utensils and surfaces are clean. Proper waste management, including the disposal of household waste, is highlighted to maintain a clean and safe environment.
In emergency situations, the guide advises seeking immediate medical attention for severe diarrhea and emphasizes the prompt burial of bodies during outbreaks to prevent contamination. Additionally, it provides visuals and strategies for community engagement, empowering health workers and communities to promote awareness and adopt effective cholera prevention measures.
more
What you should do as head of school or child centre to prevent cholera:
Educate all staff and pupils on the common cholera transmission routes and how to prevent it.
Educate all kitchen staff on how to handle food and cooking utensils. Emphasis the key points below:
o All kitchen staff MUST wa...sh their hands with soap and chlorine solution before cooking or handling food.
o All food should be properly stored to prevent contamination from insects etc.
o Wash all food in safe water.
o All food served should be properly cooked, and served hot.
o Only allow kitchen staff to enter the kitchen and to serve food.
o Wash dishes with soap or chlorine solution and rinse under safe water. Dry dishes on a rack well above the ground and in the direct sunlight (sunlight will help to disinfect).
All students should wash their hands with soap and safe water or chlorine solution before eating
Avoid washing your hands in a bowl of standing water, always use safe, running water!
more
Contains tools and resources for countries to develop clean household energy policies and programmes.
This policy brief explores the impact of air pollution on health and address the air quality issue in the response to noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). It also provides key actions that policy makers, NGOs and health professionals can take to ensure that every one can breathe clean air.
This report summarizes the latest scientific knowledge on the links between exposure to air pollution and adverse health effects in children. It is intended to inform and motivate individual and collective action by health care professionals to prevent damage to children’s health from exposure to ...air pollution. Air pollution is a major environmental health threat. Exposure to fine particles in both the ambient environment and in the household causes about seven million premature deaths each year. Ambient air pollution (AAP) alone imposes enormous costs on the global economy, amounting to more than US$ 5 trillion in total welfare losses in 2013.
more
This report summarizes the latest scientific knowledge on the links between exposure to air pollution and adverse health effects in children. It is intended to inform and motivate individual and collective action by health care professionals to prevent damage to children’s health from exposure to ...air pollution.
Air pollution is a major environmental health threat. Exposure to fine particles in both the ambient environment and in the household causes about seven million premature deaths each year. Ambient air pollution alone imposes enormous costs on the global economy, amounting to more than US$ 5 trillion in total welfare losses in 2013.
This public health crisis is receiving more attention, but one critical aspect is often overlooked: how air pollution affects children in uniquely damaging ways. Recent data released by the World Health Organization (WHO) show that air pollution has a vast and terrible impact on child health and survival. Globally, 93% of all children live in environments with air pollution levels above the WHO guidelines (see the full report, Air pollution and child health: prescribing clean air. More than one in every four deaths of children under 5 years of age is directly or indirectly related to environmental risks. Both ambient air pollution and household air pollution contribute to respiratory tract infections that resulted in 543 000 deaths in children under the age of 5 years in 2016.
more
Best practice for hand hygiene requires the availability of clean water, soap, and single use disposable towels or alcohol based hand sanitiser with a concentration of 70%. Availability of these resources is not always assured. When resources for hand hygiene are not available other materials need t...o be considered to prevent transmission of infection. This document provides community guidance on evidence-based alternative hand hygiene strategies in the absence of clean running water, soap or alcohol-based hand rub.
more
With hundreds of illustrations and clear instructions, A Community Guide to Environmental Health helps health promoters, development workers, environmental activists, and community leaders take charge of their environmental health in villages and cities alike. Also available in Arabic, Spanish, Chin...ese, Portuguese, Turkish, Dari, Malayan, Mongolian and Russian.
more