Does Cooking Produce Indoor Air Pollution?

You cook a steak and the smell lingers. Smoke from the cast iron skillet leaves your kitchen in a cloudy haze. The batch of brownies you were baking stayed in the oven just a few minutes too long, coming out charred and crunchy. Besides a botched dessert, are there any lingering effects? Namely, does cooking cause indoor air pollution at home?


Let’s talk about some of the ways you might be inadvertently producing air pollution from cooking. We’ll also provide a few tips for reducing the contaminants at home without giving up your love for cooking and baking!


Where Does Indoor Air Pollution From Cooking Come From?


Cooking contributes to some of the biggest indoor air pollutants. There are a few potential sources.


The Materials You’re Using Could Be Releasing Contaminants


Some materials can be safely heated. Others release dangerous toxins into the air when they reach a certain temperature.


We might not think twice before throwing a plastic container holding leftovers into the microwave. But heating plastic can quickly release dangerous chemicals like BPA and phthalates. These are bad for both the environment and your health. Microplastics are showing up everywhere — in our land, seas, food, and us.


So, transfer your food to something safer before heating unless a container is clearly marked as microwave-safe. You should also replace plastic containers that look old and worn.


 

 

As an alternative, silicone is much safer to heat because it can withstand higher temperatures. You can put it in the oven, air fryer, microwave, and dishwasher. Silicone products should have symbols on their packaging that denote what specific appliances they can be used with.


The Appliances You Use to Cook Can Cause Indoor Air Pollution


Gas stoves can affect your health by causing air pollution, especially if you have an existing respiratory illness. According to a Stanford University study, they emit nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO), formaldehyde (HCHO), and particulate matter. Even when a gas stove is turned off, it can release methane!


Not only do these contaminants contribute to climate change, but — as we shared — they can lead to several health issues. Carbon monoxide exposure can cause symptoms like headaches, vomiting, dizziness, and nausea. Nitrogen dioxide can make individuals with asthma more sensitive and worsen their symptoms.


We’ll talk more about better alternatives in a moment.


Smoke From Cooking is Polluting the Air You Breathe


Lastly, we want to talk about what happens when you leave something on the stove or in the oven a little too long. (Hey, it happens!)


It’s not just your meal that suffers; your indoor air quality (and thus, your health) does too. The smoke from cooking releases toxic particles into the air. In fact, air pollution like that led to 3.1 million premature deaths in 2021.


 

 

If you can, turn to “clean cooking.” Stoves that are powered by electricity, biogas, ethanol, and liquid petroleum gas are superior to stoves that use solid fuel. Appliances that run on high-efficiency charcoal and biomass pellets are also better alternatives. These options are going to produce less smoke than their counterparts.   


A range hood is another consideration, as this can remove cooking pollutants from your home. Just be sure it’s vented to the outdoors. You should turn it on any time you use the stove or oven.


A Few More Tips to Reduce Indoor Air Pollution From Cooking


Not in a place to swap out your appliances? That’s okay! There are still simple things you can do to cut back on indoor air pollution from cooking.


  • Put a lid on your pots and pans while cooking: Not only will your food cook faster, but it’ll keep the fumes contained.
  • Keep the doors closed: Similar to the previous tip about containing fumes, shut the doors to the other area rooms of your home so that they experience less exposure.
  • Steer clear of pans with nonstick coating: Nonstick pans are sometimes made with forever chemicals.
  • Save high-temp cooking for outdoors: If you want to grill, char, or fry food at very high temperatures (or for a long period of time), try to do it outside. If you can stick to lower temperatures, that’s even better.
  • Clean up spills: For instance, if oil splatters onto the stovetop or in the oven, it can quickly start smoking. Turn off the heat and wipe it off before cooking any further.
  • Use the back burners: If you’ve got a range hood, it mostly likely sucks up air from the back of the stove. 
  • Use the right devices to monitor contaminants in your home: Make sure you have a functioning carbon monoxide detector. You can also find monitors for contaminants like particulate matter and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Some gadgets are all-in-one.
  • Use a self-running air purifier: An air purifier made with HEPA-13 filtration is a powerful way to remove many of the contaminants polluting your home. This includes indoor air pollution from cooking.

Air purification technology is the most effective way to keep the air in your home clean, so let’s talk about that a bit more.


HEPA-13 Air Purification


The Sans Air Purifier uses a four-layer filtration system that includes a pre-filter for larger particles; a medical-grade HEPA 13 filter that can capture 99.97% of particles as small as 0.3 microns in diameter; an activated carbon filter to absorb chemicals, odors, and gases; and an internal UV-C light to kill bacteria so that it can’t grow on the filters.


Our SmartPure technology monitors your air quality in real time, giving you in-the-moment updates, and runs as needed based on the air quality. It’ll even notify you when it’s time to replace the filter, after about 2,200 hours (three months) of continuous protection.


Sans is whisper quiet, so it won’t disturb you when you’re sleeping or working, lightweight and portable, and covers up to 1,560 square feet of space. Looking for something smaller? Try the Sans Mini!


Air pollution can lead to many different health issues, including respiratory symptoms and even problems with cognition. Follow these tips and protect yourself from indoor air pollution from cooking with Sans. (You can purchase it with your HSA card!)