Indoor air pollution is an aspect human health that most researchers and environment
activists have not given adequate attention, whereas billions of dollars have been channeled in
research into harmful effects of cigarette smoke and outdoor pollution. Wood,
dung, stove and
grass are used daily in about half of the world's households especially in developing countries as
energy for cooking and heating. In most parts of the Third World they are burnt
in open fires or inefficient stoves in poorly ventilated kitchens. The result
is a toll in death and ill
health far greater than the more often discussed outdoor air pollution.
