Household air pollution is a risk factor for dementia: Lancet study in Karnataka

India Today

a day ago

Cooking with polluting fuels such as firewood, cow dung cakes, and kerosene has shown to silently damage the brain, especially among women in rural India, according to new research.The study, conducted under the Centre for Brain Research-Srinivaspura Aging, Neuro Senescence, and Cognition (CBR-SANSCOG) project, and published in The Lancet, suggests that household air pollution from cooking fuels is a major but overlooked risk factor for cognitive decline.advertisementWhile earlier studies linked smoke from kitchens to lung and heart disease, this is among the first to use brain imaging to show its possible impact on memory and thinking abilities in India's rural population.
Researchers examined 4,145 adults aged 45 and above from a rural community in Karnataka.Participants were grouped based on the type of cooking fuels they used – only clean (such as LPG or electricity), a mix of clean and polluting, or only polluting fuels. Their memory, attention, executive function, and visuospatial ability were tested using culturally adapted computer-based tools.In addition, 994 participants underwent brain MRI scans to study brain volume and white matter changes.The findings are striking. People who relied solely on polluting cooking methods scored quite low in global cognition, executive functions, and visuospatial skills (skills needed for navigation, analysing, perceiving, and spatial relationships) compared to those using clean fuels.Even those who used a mix of fuels performed worse in overall cognition.Women appeared especially vulnerable in the study. Female participants exposed to polluting fuels not only had lower global cognition scores but also showed reduced hippocampal volumes on MRI scans – a part of the brain critical for memory.Researchers believe this could be because women in rural households spend more time near the cooking area, facing prolonged exposure to harmful fumes.'These results highlight how something as basic as the type of fuel used in kitchens can have long-term consequences on brain health. Women in particular face double jeopardy – higher exposure and greater cognitive risk," the researchers wrote.The study also observed a link between fuel exposure and white matter hyperintensities (WMHs), which are brain changes often associated with ageing, stroke, and dementia.This adds further weight to concerns that household air pollution may accelerate brain ageing and cognitive decline.The findings are a wake-up call for policymakers. While India has made progress through schemes like the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana that provide LPG connections to rural households, many families still rely on biomass due to affordability and access issues.Promoting clean cooking technologies is not just about reducing respiratory illnesses. It may also help protect brain health and reduce the risk of dementia in rural populations.advertisementAs India's population ages, such evidence highlights the need for cleaner kitchens – not just for lungs, but for minds as well.- Ends