The study measured air pollution levels both during service hours and overnight.
stove to an electric one can improve asthma symptoms, a
staurant kitchens using gas and propane appliances are exposed to air pollution and heat levels that exceed health guidelines.
The National Restaurant Association reports that over
Published in the scientific journal Environmental Research Letters, and in collaboration with chef Christopher Galarza, the study was conducted by researchers from the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability, the New York University Grossman School of Medicine and PSE Healthy Energy, an independent scientific research institute specializing in bringing science to energy policy.
According to a press release, this is the first US study to compare air quality and heat levels in restaurant kitchens that use gas appliances with those that use all-electric appliances under real-world working conditions. The study is part of PSE Healthy Energy’s
, which uncovers air quality and health risks associated with methane sources to protect public health and the climate.
: methane, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and benzene. Measurements were taken in five employee work areas, both during service and overnight, in 21 gas kitchens, three propane kitchens and three all-electric kitchens in California, New York and Pennsylvania.
“Everyone likely has a favorite restaurant or fast food chain, but most people probably haven’t thought about the equipment being used and how that affects what the staff is experiencing in the kitchen area,” Drew Michanowicz, principal scientist at PSE Healthy Energy, told CNET in an email.
When kitchens are not properly ventilated, pollutants can build up and
, though this depends on individual sensitivity and exposure level.
During the study, it was discovered that in kitchens with gas or propane appliances, at least one health guideline for pollutant exposure was exceeded during cooking hours.
About 70% of gas kitchens in the study surpassed the US Environmental Protection Agency’s 1-hour outdoor air standard for nitrogen dioxide. The outdoor standard was used because there is no comparable indoor standard in the US.
In kitchens with gas or propane appliances, about 170 cumulative hours (about four full work weeks) were recorded in which nitrogen dioxide concentrations exceeded the World Health Organization’s hour-averaged exposure recommendation. This recommendation is roughly equal to the EPA’s outdoor standard, and both apply to the general population.
One kitchen’s 15-minute average nitrogen dioxide level exceeded the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health’s recommended short-term workplace exposure limit.
reduced lung function, increased asthma attacks, increased airway inflammation, and worsened cough and wheezing. This gaseous air pollutant has even been tied to causing asthma in children.
The study also found that carbon monoxide and benzene concentrations exceeded California’s 1-hour exposure guidelines in three and five gas kitchens, respectively.
can range from a headache and dizziness to passing out and death. Benzene, on the other hand, is a carcinogen that
a higher risk of leukemia and other blood cell cancers.
By comparison, no all-electric kitchen exceeded pollution-exposure health guidelines during cooking hours.
“This study emphasizes that the concentrations of pollutants in commercial kitchens with gas-fired appliances can reach levels even higher than what we’ve previously observed in homes with gas stoves,” Yannai Kashtan, an air quality scientist at PSE Healthy Energy, told CNET in an email.
Those actually working in the kitchen aren’t the only ones who could be affected.
Even outside cooking hours, exposure remains a concern, according to new evidence from the study.
When gas appliance pilot lights remain lit, and ventilation is turned off, cleaning crews and staff arriving early risk exposure to pollutants. About 71% of the gas kitchens with overnight monitoring recorded higher levels of nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, methane and benzene overnight than during service hours.
can displace oxygen in the air, causing fatigue, rapid breathing, vomiting, collapse, convulsions, organ damage and death.
When you consider that commercial gas appliances are also used in hospitals, schools and other buildings, the health concerns extend beyond restaurant kitchens.
None of the all-electric kitchens exceeded pollutant guidelines overnight.
When it came to heat health guidelines, about 68% of gas kitchens with temperature data exceeded 90 degrees Fahrenheit, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s proposed high-heat threshold.
Even when temperatures outside were below 75 degrees Fahrenheit, 10 of 13 gas kitchens exceeded 90 degrees Fahrenheit, meaning that high heat in commercial kitchens isn’t directly tied to the weather.
When a temperature monitor was attached to a chef’s shoulde