Chemistry of Indoor Pollutants and Their Impacts on Human Health

Abstract

Indoor air pollution refers to the deterioration of indoor air quality by harmful chemicals and other products, which can be up to 10 times worse than the outdoor air pollution. Almost 90% of the modern human time is spent indoors. In India, out of 0.2 billion people using fuel for cooking; 49% use firewood; 8.9% cow dung cake; 1.5% coal, lignite, or charcoal; 2.9% kerosene; 28.6% liquefied petroleum gas (LPG); 0.1% electricity; 0.4% biogas; and 0.5% any other means. The negative consequences of indoor air pollution result in around 2 million premature deaths every year, with 44% are due to pneumonia, 54% from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and 2% from lung cancer. The so-called "natural" or "ecologic" goods are not inherently free of adverse health effects. Certain other constituents such as terpenoids and linseed oil may be chemically reactive than those from non-ecologic products. Secondary emissions from these products may present a greater risk to human health than those compounds which are substitutes for their precursors.