JudeC
New member
(CNN) -- Whether it's a weekend barbecue or roasting marshmallows on a camping trip, cooking over an open fire is a novelty that many Americans enjoy.
But for nearly half the world's population, building and maintaining a fire is a daily -- and often deadly -- chore.
In remote villages and city slums, women tend to fires for hours on end, breathing in smoke that is the equivalent of smoking two packs of cigarettes a day, according to the World Health Organization. Many of these women have their children close by or strapped to their chest or back, and the dangerous pollutants from the smoke can result in severe damage to their lungs as well.
Nancy Hughes witnessed this firsthand while working with a medical team in Guatemala more than a decade ago.
"There were doctors on the medical team who could not put tubes down the babies' throats because the throats were so choked with creosote," said Hughes, a 70-year-old grandmother who lives in Eugene, Oregon. "Imagine you've got a new baby and you couldn't save that baby's life ... and it's because of cooking."
Makes you wonder if every braai should come with a warning label stating that pregnant woman should not stand near this device!!!
But for nearly half the world's population, building and maintaining a fire is a daily -- and often deadly -- chore.
In remote villages and city slums, women tend to fires for hours on end, breathing in smoke that is the equivalent of smoking two packs of cigarettes a day, according to the World Health Organization. Many of these women have their children close by or strapped to their chest or back, and the dangerous pollutants from the smoke can result in severe damage to their lungs as well.
Nancy Hughes witnessed this firsthand while working with a medical team in Guatemala more than a decade ago.
"There were doctors on the medical team who could not put tubes down the babies' throats because the throats were so choked with creosote," said Hughes, a 70-year-old grandmother who lives in Eugene, Oregon. "Imagine you've got a new baby and you couldn't save that baby's life ... and it's because of cooking."
Makes you wonder if every braai should come with a warning label stating that pregnant woman should not stand near this device!!!