In New York City, newly constructed buildings under seven stories are not allowed to have gas hookups for heating or stoves. In California, new gas hookups are banned or discouraged in more than four dozen cities. But the war on gas may be coming for all Americans' cooking appliances, as a federal agency considers a ban on gas stoves, which have been linked to childhood asthma and other respiratory problems.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission said this week that gas stoves, found in 35 percent to 40 percent of American homes and 76 percent of restaurants, release nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide at levels deemed unsafe by the Environmental Protection Agency and the World Health Organization. This comes on the heels of a new study, published just last month in The International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, linking indoor gas stove usage and increased risk of childhood asthma, attributing some 12.7 percent of childhood asthma cases to the appliances. (Some doubt has been cast on that specific study, though there is solid evidence that elevated nitrogen dioxide levels are linked to respiratory issues.) "Are gas stoves the new cigarettes?" asks a sensationalist Curbed headline.
