The Problem
Three billion people cook over open-fires that cause major health and environmental issues.
Imagine sleeping and eating in a space the size of a small American bedroom…along with your whole extended family. Now imagine that you also cook in that room, over an open fire, which is smoky, hot and dangerous to your small children. On average, each Ecocina stove impacts the lives of 8 family members, alleviating upper respiratory ailments and burns while cutting down on deforestation and the time it takes to collect firewood.
“The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that more than two million premature deaths annually are caused by exposure to smoke from traditional cookstoves and open fires, with women and children the most afflicted. That makes it one of the top five overall health risks in poor, developing countries, and the cause of twice as many deaths as malaria.
The toxic emissions are blamed for low birth weights, pneumonia in young children, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema, cardiovascular disease, lung cancer, cataracts and other health problems in adults. Half of all deaths among children under age five from acute lower respiratory infections are due to indoor air pollution from household solid fuels.”
– www.cmaj.ca, October 12, 2010
In the developing world, alarming numbers of children show up at hospitals with severe burns, eye infections and upper respiratory problems, all a result of open-fire cooking inside small, unventilated homes. Carbon monoxide testing shows exposure levels in these homes to be twice the level that is considered dangerous.
Many women spend up to 20 hours a week gathering fuel-wood – both a loss of productivity and a cause of extreme deforestation, resulting in environmental degradation and dangerous mudslides.