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Your kitchen hob could be leaking cancer–causing chemicals into your home, a new study warns.
Experts have discovered that 'eye–popping' quantities of benzene are being emitted from gas stoves – even when they're switched off – with levels equivalent to living with a smoker.
Benzene is a colourless, highly flammable chemical emitted in petrol fumes, cigarettes and natural gas that has a characteristic sweet odour.
Exposure has been linked with a higher risk of cancer, particularly leukaemia, and other long–term health issues.
But hundreds of thousands of people in the UK could be regularly exposed to levels of beyond the recommended limit, scientists warned.
'The levels of benzene we found in the distribution system gas in the UK and the Netherlands are frankly eye–popping,' said Dr Seth Shonkoff, executive director of PSE Health Energy, which led the study.
'That means even a small leak can pose significant health risks quickly indoors and outdoors.
'Whether it's leaking from a pipeline or a stove in someone's kitchen, it's all the same gas, and health risk travels with it.'
The researchers discovered different benzene concentrations within their samples, with Amsterdam and London recording the highest amounts
For the study, researchers collected nearly 80 samples of unburned gas from homes in the UK, the Netherlands and Italy.
They found that European natural gas appears to contain much more benzene than American sources.
Compared with average US levels, benzene concentrations in London and Amsterdam homes were between 60 and 80 times higher than the average in North America.
Low–level gas leaks were also found in 40 per cent of the kitchens, in quantities too small for people to detect.
In roughly nine per cent of homes, the leak rates combined with the benzene levels in gas were high enough to exceed the EU annual limit, indicating a potential chronic health risk.
The largest in–home benzene concentration was recorded in London, where a leaky stove was releasing amounts 13 times higher than the recommended limit.
The researchers also calculated that in the UK, benzene exposure could rise to nine times above the national safe limit before most people could smell the leak.
In the worst affected homes, 'modelled benzene exposure…is worse that living with a smoker' the team, which also included scientists from Stanford University, said.
Experts have discovered that 'eye–popping' quantities of benzene are being emitted from gas stoves. Pictured: The team carrying out their study
What is benzene?
- Benzene is a colourless, highly flammable chemical found in petrol fumes and natural gas that has a characteristic sweet odour
- Exposure to benzene is most likely to occur through inhalation, with cigarette smoking a significant source
- Short term exposure to benzene in air may cause irritation to the eyes nose and throat, cough, a hoarse voice and breathing difficulties
- Exposure to larger amounts can cause swelling of the airways and a build–up of fluid in the lungs
- Longer–term, it has been linked with a higher risk of cancer, particularly leukaemia, and other health issues
More than half of British homes use gas for cooking – the equivalent of more than 36 million people – estimations suggest.
Dr Tamara Sparks, who led the study, said: 'Given these high concentrations, a lot of people are likely being chronically exposed to benzene without knowing it.
'We have little clarity on why gas leaks occur in some homes and not others, making this benzene hazard essentially a lottery.
'This has so far flown under the public's radar, but we hope that, by bringing attention to it, action can be taken to reduce this threat.'
She explained that people can reduce their personal risk by opening windows to get more fresh air, 'but there's only so much an individual can do when this gas is piped into their home.'
In the UK, levels of the toxic chemical were highest in gas from London stoves, which had 64 times more benzene than those from North American homes.
Cambridgeshire gas had 42 times more, while Manchester and Edinburgh had 23 times more and 16 times more respectively.
The study, published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, did not explain the reason for the regional difference but suggested it may be caused by different gas sources.
Levels of the toxic chemical vary across regions, the study found. The largest in–home benzene concentration was recorded in London
'We expect our homes to be the safest place we spend our time,' Rachel Huxley, a spokeswoman for the Wellcome Trust, said.
'This study shows that everyday use of gas can put people at unnecessary health risks.'
Frank Kelly, professor of community health at Imperial College London who was not involved in the study, said he did not think the authors had exaggerated the risks, adding that the findings are 'really quite worrying'.
However Alastair Lewis, professor of atmospheric chemistry at the University of York, said that 'current data on UK homes doesn't indicate a widespread problem with high benzene concentrations'.
Future Energy Networks, the body representing UK gas distributors, said any potential health and safety concerns were taken seriously and it would consider the study findings.
WHAT HAVE RECENT STUDIES SHOWN POLLUTION CAN DO TO OUR HEALTH AND BODIES?
CAUSE CHILDREN TO HAVE A LOW IQ: Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, found in May 2019 that children born to mothers who live in polluted areas have an IQ that is up to seven points lower than those living in places with cleaner air.
CAUSE CHILDREN TO HAVE POORER MEMORY: Researchers at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health found boys exposed to greater levels of PM2.5 in the womb performed worse on memory tests by the time they are 10.
DELAY THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDREN: Youngsters who live less than one-third of a mile away from busy roads are twice as likely to score lower on tests of communication skills in infancy, found researchers at Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health in April. They were also more likely to have poorer hand-eye coordination.
MAKE CHILDREN MORE ANXIOUS: University of Cincinnati scientists claimed pollution may alter the structure of children's brains to make them more anxious. Their study of 14 youngsters found rates of anxiety was higher among those exposed to greater levels of pollution.
CUT YOUR CHILD'S LIFE SHORT: Children born today will lose nearly two years of their lives because of air pollution, according to a report by the US-based Health Effects Institute and the University of British Columbia in April 2019. UNICEF called for action on the back of the study.
RAISE A CHILD'S RISK OF AUTISM: Researchers at Monash University in Australia discovered youngsters living in highly polluted parts of Shanghai have a 86 per cent greater chance of developing ASD. Lead author Dr Yuming Guo said: 'The developing brains of young children are more vulnerable to toxic exposures in the environment.'
CAUSE ASTHMA IN CHILDREN: Four million children around the world develop asthma each year because of road traffic pollution, a major study by academics at George Washington University estimated. Experts are divided as to what causes asthma - but exposure to pollution in childhood increases the risk by damaging the lungs.
MAKE CHILDREN FAT: University of Southern California experts found last November that 10 year olds who lived in polluted areas when they were babies are, on average, 2.2lbs (1kg), heavier than those who grew up around cleaner air. Nitrogen dioxide pollution could disrupt how well children burn fat, the scientists said.
LEAVE WOMEN INFERTILE EARLIER: Scientists at the University of Modena, Italy, claimed in May 2019 that they believe pollution speeds up ageing in women, just like smoking, meaning they run out of eggs faster. This was based on them finding almost two-thirds of women who have a low 'reserve' of eggs regularly inhaled toxic air.
RAISE THE RISK OF A MISCARRIAGE: University of Utah scientists found in January that pregnant women are 16 per cent more likely to suffer the heartbreak of a miscarriage if they live in areas of high pollution.
RAISE THE RISK OF BREAST CANCER: Scientists at the University of Stirling found six women working at the same bridge next to a busy road in the US got breast cancer within three years of each other. There was a one in 10,000 chance the cases were a coincidence, the study said. It suggested chemicals in the traffic fumes caused the cancer by shutting down the BRCA genes, which try to stop tumours growing.
DAMAGE A MAN'S SPERM: Brazilian scientists at the University of Sao Paulo found in March that mice exposed to toxic air had lower counts and worse quality sperm compared to those who had inhaled clean air since birth.
MAKE MEN LESS LIKELY TO GET SEXUALLY AROUSED: Scientists at Guangzhou Medical University in China found rats exposed to air pollution struggled to get sexually aroused. Scientists believe it may also affect men, as inhaling poisonous particles may trigger inflammation in blood vessels and starve the genitals of oxygen – affecting men's ability to become sexually aroused.
MAKE MEN MORE LIKELY TO HAVE ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION: Men who live on main roads are more likely to have difficulty getting an erection due to exposure to pollution, a Guangzhou University in China study suggested in February. Toxic fumes reduced blood flow to the genitals, tests on rats showed, putting them at risk of developing erectile dysfunction.
RAISE THE RISK OF PSYCHOSIS: In March, King's College London scientists linked toxic air to intense paranoia and hearing voices in young people for the first time. They said uncovering exactly how pollution may lead to psychosis should be an 'urgent health priority'.
MAKE YOU DEPRESSED: Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers found in January that that the more polluted the air, the sadder we are. Their study was based on analysing social media users in China alongside the average daily PM2.5 concentration and weather data where they lived.
CAUSE DEMENTIA: Air pollution could be responsible for 60,000 cases of dementia in the UK, researchers from King's College London and St George's, University of London, calculated last September. Tiny pollutants breathed deep into the lungs and enter the blood stream, where they may travel into the brain and cause inflammation – a problem which may trigger dementia.
