A key focus in healthcare is around preventative risk factors of disease, and one condition with lots of environmental risk factors is lung cancer. We often hear about smoking and asbestos but one I learnt about this week was cooking oils. Rates of lung cancer in non-smokers is increasing and there is growing evidence to show that household pollutants have a significant impact on lung health.
A recent systematic review looked at studies conducted in Taiwan and Hong Kong which focused on Chinese women using traditional Chinese cooking methods. This found a dose-response relationship between exposure to cooking fumes and lung cancer. They found those that cooked three meals a day had a three times higher risk of lung cancer than those that cooked one meal daily. This is thought to be due to carcinogens released by cooking oils when heated to high temperatures.
This was a good reminder of how our daily practices, the way we cook, clean or heat our homes can have a significant impact on our long-term health.[1]
To help reduce this risk, make sure your cooking area is well ventilated. This can be done by using an extractor fan and opening windows & doors when cooking on a hob (whether it is gas, electric or induction). It’s also worth reducing the amount of oil that you’re using to the minimum amount possible, switching to oils with a higher smoke point (for example grapeseed, canola, refined olive, or rapeseed oil) and not allowing your oil to start smoking when pre-heating.
[1] McAllister BJ, Malhotra Mukhtyar R, Cai S, Brown K, Lock S, Khan S. Relationship between household air pollution and lung cancer in never smokers in high-income countries: a systematic review. BMJ Open. 2025 Jun 20;15(6):e093870. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2024-093870. PMID: 40541430; PMCID: PMC12182138.