TY - JOUR
T1 - Household use of polluting cooking fuels and late-life cognitive function
T2 - A harmonized analysis of India, Mexico, and China
AU - Saenz, Joseph L.
AU - Adar, Sara D.
AU - Zhang, Yuan S.
AU - Wilkens, Jenny
AU - Chattopadhyay, Aparajita
AU - Lee, Jinkook
AU - Wong, Rebeca
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by the National Institute of Aging at the National Institutes on Health by grant numbers R00 AG058799; R01 AG030153; K99 AG070274; P30 AG066615, and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development by grant number T32 HD091058. The MHAS is partly sponsored by the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging (R01 AG018016) and the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (INEGI). The LASI is sponsored by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, the National Institute on Aging (R01 AG042778), and United Nations Population Fund, India. The CHARLS is sponsored by the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging (R01 AG037031), The National Natural Science Foundation of China, the World Bank Group, Chinese Medical Board, and Peking University. These funding sources had no role in the analysis or interpretation of the data, writing of the report, or the decision to submit the article for publication.
Funding Information:
This work was supported by the National Institute of Aging at the National Institutes on Health by grant numbers R00 AG058799; R01 AG030153; K99 AG070274; P30 AG066615, and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development by grant number T32 HD091058. The MHAS is partly sponsored by the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging (R01 AG018016) and the Instituto Nacional de Estad?stica y Geograf?a (INEGI). The LASI is sponsored by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, the National Institute on Aging (R01 AG042778), and United Nations Population Fund, India. The CHARLS is sponsored by the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging (R01 AG037031), The National Natural Science Foundation of China, the World Bank Group, Chinese Medical Board, and Peking University. These funding sources had no role in the analysis or interpretation of the data, writing of the report, or the decision to submit the article for publication.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors
PY - 2021/11
Y1 - 2021/11
N2 - Introduction: Exposure to high levels of air pollution is associated with poor health, including worse cognitive function. Whereas many studies of cognition have assessed outdoor air pollution, we evaluate how exposure to air pollution from combustion of polluting household fuels relates with cognitive function using harmonized data from India, Mexico, and China. Materials & methods: We analyze adults age 50+ in three nationally representative studies of aging with common data collection methods: the 2017–2019 Longitudinal Aging Study in India (n = 50,532), 2015 Mexican Health and Aging Study (n = 12,883), and 2013 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (n = 12,913). Use of polluting fuels was assessed by self-report of wood, coal, kerosene, crop residue, or dung for cooking. Cognitive function was measured by performance across several cognitive domains and summarized into a total cognition score. We used linear regression, by country, to test how polluting cooking fuel use relates with cognition adjusting for key demographic and socioeconomic factors. Results: Approximately 47%, 12%, and 48% of respondents in India, Mexico, and China, respectively, relied primarily on polluting cooking fuel, which was more common in rural areas. Using polluting cooking fuels was consistently associated with poorer cognitive function in all countries, independent of demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. Adjusted differences in cognitive function between individuals using polluting and clean cooking fuel were equivalent to differences observed between individuals who were 3 years of age apart in Mexico and China and 6 years of age apart in India. Across countries, associations between polluting cooking fuel use and poorer cognition were larger for women. Conclusions: Results suggest that household air pollution from the use of polluting cooking fuel may play an important role in shaping cognitive outcomes of older adults in countries where reliance on polluting fuels for domestic energy needs still prevails. As these countries continue to age, public health efforts should seek to reduce reliance on these fuels.
AB - Introduction: Exposure to high levels of air pollution is associated with poor health, including worse cognitive function. Whereas many studies of cognition have assessed outdoor air pollution, we evaluate how exposure to air pollution from combustion of polluting household fuels relates with cognitive function using harmonized data from India, Mexico, and China. Materials & methods: We analyze adults age 50+ in three nationally representative studies of aging with common data collection methods: the 2017–2019 Longitudinal Aging Study in India (n = 50,532), 2015 Mexican Health and Aging Study (n = 12,883), and 2013 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (n = 12,913). Use of polluting fuels was assessed by self-report of wood, coal, kerosene, crop residue, or dung for cooking. Cognitive function was measured by performance across several cognitive domains and summarized into a total cognition score. We used linear regression, by country, to test how polluting cooking fuel use relates with cognition adjusting for key demographic and socioeconomic factors. Results: Approximately 47%, 12%, and 48% of respondents in India, Mexico, and China, respectively, relied primarily on polluting cooking fuel, which was more common in rural areas. Using polluting cooking fuels was consistently associated with poorer cognitive function in all countries, independent of demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. Adjusted differences in cognitive function between individuals using polluting and clean cooking fuel were equivalent to differences observed between individuals who were 3 years of age apart in Mexico and China and 6 years of age apart in India. Across countries, associations between polluting cooking fuel use and poorer cognition were larger for women. Conclusions: Results suggest that household air pollution from the use of polluting cooking fuel may play an important role in shaping cognitive outcomes of older adults in countries where reliance on polluting fuels for domestic energy needs still prevails. As these countries continue to age, public health efforts should seek to reduce reliance on these fuels.
KW - Aging
KW - China
KW - Cognition
KW - Household air pollution
KW - India
KW - Latin America
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UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85108605093&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.envint.2021.106722
DO - 10.1016/j.envint.2021.106722
M3 - Article
C2 - 34182193
AN - SCOPUS:85108605093
SN - 0160-4120
VL - 156
JO - Environment international
JF - Environment international
M1 - 106722
ER -