Abstract
Objectives: We studied respiratory problems among vendors exposed to cooking fumes in an open-air hawker center. Exposure to cooking fumes from either the use of fossil fuels or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has been shown to be associated with adverse respiratory health effects.Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study among 67 food vendors exposed to cooking fumes as well as 18 merchandise sellers at an open-air hawker center in Brunei Darussalam. Past medical and smoking history and exposure to cooking fumes were obtained. The validated American Thoracic Society Questionnaire with a translated Malay version was used to ask for respiratory symptoms.Results: Compared to merchandise sellers (n = 18), cooking vendors (n = 67) had a higher self-reported respiratory symptoms (50.7% for those cooking and 33.3% for merchandise sellers). Cough (28.3%) was the main respiratory symptom experienced in cooking vendors and breathlessness (22.2%) among merchandise sellers. Half (50.0%) of cooking vendors who worked for more than 10 years had cough and 27.3% had phlegm. Those cooking with charcoal were two times more likely to have cough than those cooking with LPG. Cooking vendors with a job duration of more than 10 years were thrice more likely to have cough.Conclusion: Cooking vendors in the open-air hawker center exposed to cooking fumes had more respiratory symptoms compared to non-exposed merchandise sellers. The type of fuel used for cooking and duration of work was associated with increased prevalence of cough.
Highlights
Numerous studies have indicated that cooking fumes, either fossil fuels or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), contain a considerable level of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHS), oxides of nitrogen (NOx), carbon monoxide (CO), and other compounds, which can cause undesirable health consequences
Cooking vendors in the open-air hawker center exposed to cooking fumes had more respiratory symptoms compared to non-exposed merchandise sellers
Merchandise sellers nearby were used as the comparison group; the study area were separated into respective sections namely one area for those cooking with charcoal, one for those cooking with LPG, and another for merchandise sellers
Summary
Numerous studies have indicated that cooking fumes, either fossil fuels or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), contain a considerable level of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHS), oxides of nitrogen (NOx), carbon monoxide (CO), and other compounds, which can cause undesirable health consequences. Vainiotaloa and Matveinena [1] confirmed that cooking fumes contain hazardous compounds such as formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, acrolein, fat aerosol, and PAHS compounds. They stated that workers cooking with these fuels may be exposed to relatively high concentrations of airborne impurities. Grilling with LPG has a fuel consumption that is relatively close to the amount of food cooked as the fuel consumption using LPG can be regulated compared with charcoal. There are several health effects associated with exposure to cooking fumes, which have been reported include increased risk for respiratory symptoms and of non-respiratory outcomes such as cancer and adverse reproductive outcomes
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