This comes after U.S. and Canadian officials showed concern about gas stoves, after a study last year linked them to childhood asthma
The air fryer, which has become an increasingly popular kitchen appliance, is the least polluting cooking method, according to a new study.
“People with existing heart and lung conditions (including asthma), young children, and older adults tend to be more susceptible to the adverse health effects” of pollutants related to cooking, according to the federal Canadian government.
Researchers compared five different ways to cook chicken breast: pan frying, stir-frying, deep-fat frying, boiling and air-frying.
The cooking was done in a well-controlled research kitchen, said researchers, where they “measured the levels of particulate matter and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted by each method.”
When it came to using the air fryer, the peak concentration was 0.6 micrograms per cubic metre of air.
Researchers then measured the VOCs in parts per billion or ppb.
“The relative levels of pollution were in a similar order across the different cooking methods as for the particulate matter emissions, with pan-frying recording 260 ppb of VOCs; deep frying 230 ppb, stir-frying 110 ppb; boiling 30 ppb and air-frying 20 ppb,” the study found.
Lead author professor Christian Pfrang said a number of factors can affect the levels of pollution when cooking, “including the amount of oil used, and the temperature of the stove.”
“What we can say with certainty, however, is that improving the ventilation in kitchens by opening windows or using extractor fans, will help to disperse polluting particles and reduce personal exposure,” he said.
“It’s also really important to understand that particles will remain in the air for quite some time after you have finished cooking, so continuing to ventilate, or keeping extractor fans turned on for a period of time will really help to avoid the build-up of this indoor pollution and reduce the potential for the pollutants to be transported and distributed throughout the house with the associated higher personal exposures.”
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