YSK: Gas stoves cause cancer
YSK: Gas stoves cause cancer
Gas stoves fill the air in your home with particulate matter (pm), which has been found to increase cancer risk in the long term.
So next time you buy a stove, consider choosing an induction stove.
Btw, gas stoves being better or faster than induction is a myth. They have certain specific advantages, but they are actually slower.
Obligatory Technology Connections video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUywI8YGy0Y
The studies I read, there was no ventilation / exhaust fan. The point was that low income households using these stoves often don’t have proper ventilation and it makes them dangerous. I didn’t find much evidence that using them with proper ventilation is actually a serious problem.
Further, cooking releases all sorts of chemicals from incomplete combustion in the air if something is burning, as well as the toxic chemicals release from nonstick cookware at very high temperatures, so cooking without ventilation is bad for your health would be the message I’d take away. I find most people are completely unaware of the hazard.
We swapped out a gas for induction, it's amazing to be able to put the temp down below very hot. Also very responsive to power changes, and can wipe clean.
I love my induction hob for all the reasons you mention. It is by far the best hob I've used - much better than gas - and I cook a lot. The only slight downside is ensuring you have the right pans, but they're widely available. My enamelled cast iron casserole pot works a treat.
the maillard reaction causes cancer. I'm still not boiling my beef.
Photons cause cancer so I guess I may as well do nothing at all.
The few times I have prepared meat while trying to minimize the maillard reaction, it was still quite tasty.
That said, I agree that cancer risk is relative, and you can't avoid all risk, even if you are happy to try.
I hear sous vide steak can be quite tasty.
I hear sous vide steak can be quite tasty.
It is the best way to prepare steak, but you still need to sear it afterwards. The steak can be cooked to a perfect medium-rare all the way through… But you still need to throw it on an ultra hot skillet with some butter and rosemary afterwards, to add the crust to the outside.
Also, gas stoves increase the risk of asthma.
Again... You can and should swap in hot sunny areas specially California. I'm from California originally. You gotta be retarded not to have solar panels now. But over in places where shit freezes like here near Seattle, the entire north, and or maybe also texas, thar doesn't work. Here in the PNW, we have all electric kitchen, but also a wood burning chimney and a gas burning central heater. If the power is out you get no heating and die...or you keep warm with a chimney fire. Well heat pumps also work using propane or natural gas. There are also gas powered heaters that don't need electricity.
I've always cooked on radiant electric (not induction) stoves, but gas stoves are amazing. Literal fire just works like nothing else. Faster cooking != Better cooking, why are you conflating them?
I've never lived in a closed up efficient new house either, those seem like anything you cook would be problematic. All cooking releases something.
Will almost certainly stick with electric personally (whole house is electric only) but if I had an unlimited budget it would be gas stove, big whomping vent fan, and ovens with both steam and fan.
Induction worries me because we had an induction plate and it made a terrifying shrill noise, I worry that the high end ones do the same but we can't hear it. Which seems awful for the dogs and cats.
I've got a gas stove and a highly inefficient house. I recently got an air quality detector and yeah, it goes off every time I cook anything on the stove. Not so much if I use the oven.
I'm pretty sure the premise is correct... though unsure as to the degree. I would get an induction stove in a heart beat. Just... you know... cost and all. (Buy the stove, update my wiring to not suck where the stove would go, things like that)
Your data is only half the story though. What would your air quality meter be reading if you were cooking with an electric stove?
Appliance repairman here. What I tell my clients about gas in general is that: 1. When natural gas burns it create CO. 2. There is a none zero chance the thing can blow up.
Electric cooking appliances have an absolute zero chance of either of these two things happening.
I try to get people to switch to electric for these reasons some just like the aesthetic of cooking on gas.
a non-zero* chance
C02 isnt the only dangerous chemical.
And most peoples electricity generates huge amounts of GHGs
Just pointing out the person you replied to said CO which is carbon monoxide, not CO2
The lack of formatting in their comment was confusing.
That said, you're right that CO (or CO2) aren't the only harmful outputs of combustion.
We like to see it - fire, heat.
We like using pans that may not be induction friendly.
Did you know that the vast majority of electric stovetops aren't induction stovetops and you can use any pan you like on them? Personally, I would rather not breathe in carbon monoxide.
I absolutely agree. I'm happy to switch to a new technology as long as it performs at least as well as my current implementation.
I have a few cast iron and carbon steel pans, but most of my cooking vessels are thick copper (not copper inserts, full 3mm or more copper). Copper pans are superior to any other material (unless you prioritize cost) and are sadly incompatible with induction.
Don't even talk to me about electric element (non induction) stoves, they're garbage for heat control.
Regular old coil electric stoves will be fine with, for instance, your old rough-bottomed cast iron pan. And despite no flame, the coils glow red hot like a horseshoe at a blacksmith's, to hit that emotional spot.
There is a little learning curve: they heat up and cool down more slowly, which can be a plus if you work with it.
Note: If you have spilled, especially grease, be sure to lift the whole stovetop to clean underneath, nobody taught me that at first.
Does this apply if you use extraction?
I’ve had induction for many years, but I really want a combo with both. Making wok on induction is crap as the sides don’t get hot at all. I also have a hot spot in the center of all frying pans which is annoying when frying bigger things or several things at once.
My dream is a Gaggenau or Bora top with one side induction and one side gas. I already have the mid extractor with outside piping, so no recirculation.
I just cannot justify the $10k price tag and nobody else makes it with a fan in the middle.Our new-build house came with a gas stove+oven. Our overhead microwave does vent to the outside of the house so hopefully it helps a bit. The worst part is the oven's vents face the front, so the fumes literally go up to your face if you're standing in front of it. So when we use the oven, we try to keep distance and hope the the microwave vent sucks up as much fumes as possible.
Overhead microwaves are terrible at venting. Lots of places don't allow over the range microwaves over gas stoves in their building code. If you can afford to do so, consider getting a proper hood fan installed
Yup, I'm definitely looking into upgrading to a proper hood fan in the near future.
Next time you buy a stove, consider a scheffler dish
We really shouldn't be using electricity for applications like that
Huh TIL. Thats cool
https://solarcooking.fandom.com/wiki/Scheffler_Community_Kitchen
Apologies for the fandom link
They have certain specific advantages, but they are actually slower.
This entirely depends on the stove. Consumer-lever stoves? Sure, definitely. Commercial stoves? Probably not. Commercial stoves put out 3-4x the BTUs of a high-end consumer stove, and usually can't be installed in a home because they require significant shielding around them (so you don't burn a building down) and a very high flow hood. The highest-end Wolf range has a single burner that has a maximum output of 10,000BTU, and costs a whopping $17,000; a fairly basic range top for a commercial kitchen has six burners that can all output 32,000BTU, and costs about $3700. For stir-frying specifically, you can get a single ring wok burners outputting 92,000-125,000BTU starting at about $700 for natural gas (and a helluva lot more if you use LP).
Unfortunately, I can't find a solid conversion between gas and induction stove capabilities.
Oh, and FWIW - if you live somewhere with an unstable power grid, a natural gas or LP stove will continue to function when the power is out, albeit you'll need to light it manually. We lose power fairly regularly due to storms--usually only a day at a time, but sometimes as long as 3-4 days--and it would be a real hassle to have all electric appliances when there's no power.
1 kW is 3412 BTU/h (=BTUs)
Most induction stovetops have a boost function with around 3-4 kW (that's about 13000 BTUs).
BUT contrary to a gas stove top, almost all of the energy is actually put into the pot instead of the surroundings (only 30-40% of the energy from a gas stove is used to heat the pot). Meaning that a 4 kW induction cooktop should be comparable to a 40'000 BTUs gas stove (single burner).
a natural gas or LP stove will continue to function when the power is out
LP camp stoves work without power and are a good backup for an electric stove
Yeah, a coleman (or equivalent) 2 burner camp stove combined with the adapter to use a full size propane tank is super handy. Combine it with a cast iron griddle, and you can functionally replicate a Blackstone for much much cheaper. It's also way better for high heat cooking if you don't have a good stove fan that actually vents outside.
Also, sometimes when power goes out, gas does too (it's still a grid that can fail).
I have a Viking with 15k burners. No shielding needed, but huge upgrades to air exchange and a really powerful hood fan were.
Because it's a consumer (really a prosumer) stove, that shielding is already built in. You wouldn't want to install a commercial range in right next to wooden cabinets; it's assumed that surfaces in commercial kitchens are all going to be non-porous, hard surfaces, usually stainless steel or ceramic.
Yeah, I don't mind electric stoves but I gotta have one large high pressure burner for woks and griddles
My partner won't let me have one. :( It's too dangerous since our house is a cedar cabinet, and cedar burns VERY well.
Oh, and FWIW - if you live somewhere with an unstable power grid, a natural gas or LP stove will continue to function when the power is out, albeit you'll need to light it manually.
This is only true on the simplest (or older) gas stoves. Most models these days have all sorts of electronics, including features to prevent gas leaks.
I also live in an area with frequent power disruption. We have a backup generator. It is more than enough to power the electronics in our propane gas range, but nowhere near enough to power an electric range.
Mine works when the power is out. The only electrical part is the starter.
Also, I can heat my house (well, keep the temps above freezing) with my gas fireplace. I just have to manually click the pezioh electric starter.
OTOH, when the power is out, I can't run my stove vent hood, which vents outside and is why I don't worry much about "particulate matter." Never seen a non-externally-vented gas stove; I thought they were against code in the US, but whatever. The fireplace is entirely enclosed and sealed, and vented outside; heat circulation is via a fan that runs air around the heat box - which also doesn't run with power out, making it less efficient. But it still beats having the pipes freeze.
It's completely baffling that there are people unironically still defending gas stoves in 2025. There's no discussion to be had on the subject any more, induction is superior and that's final.
In places where natural gas is cheap and electricity is expensive cost is a factor
I would agree in places with good infrastructure. I lived somewhere with rampant power outages, sometimes for 5 days at a time.
Gas was sure nice then.
I think the people who claim gas stoves are best likely grew up either not cooking much, or had a decent gas stove, so their first exposure to an electric stove was super cheap, crappy electric coil stoves in student housing, or wherever they first lived as a young adult. Then when they were able to afford better, they got a better gas stove.
I have a really crappy gas stove, and it makes me yearn for the cheap electric coil stoves of my youth.
People say that gas stoves are more powerful and responsive, when the truth is that more powerful stoves are more powerful, and "responsiveness" is a fake concern. My crappy gas stove takes forever to get a pot of water boiling, especially compared to coil stoves. Yeah, you can turn a gas stove to 100% quickly, but that's only better if it can put out more power. It won't heat up any faster than an electric stove if the electric stove takes double the time, but also has double the power. There's also not many cases where "time to maximum heat" is what you care about, I can't think of any.
Responsiveness the other way (hot to cool) doesn't matter when you have a high thermal mass in the pan (or the pan itself has high mass), it only matters when the pan and contents are light, in which case, you just take the pan off the heat.
The way coil stoves cycle their power on and off is incredibly dumb IMO.
Induction cooktops don't do that, but it blows my mind that it took as long as it did to get a duty cycle frequency somewhere above 'once every 30 seconds'.
Induction is the best, I'll never go back
Induction is best in theory, however in practice it's unfortunately often paired with these shitty buttonless capacitive controls that are harder to decipher that hieroglyphics as well as """smart""" features
They do still sell induction stoves with classic dumb buttons but they are either hard to come buy or aimed at professional chefs, which instantly adds two zeros to their price
Yeah, I hate the interfaces, but especially the super-loud non-mutable beeps which seem to be common on every model I’ve seen. My two-burner induction setup has analog knobs for temp control, which is awesome, but it stills beep when you turn them, with every single temperature increase. Drives me crazy.
I’ll never go back to gas though. My new apartment came with a gorgeous brand new gas range, and it absolutely sucks compared to my $50 countertop induction.
Mine has simple capacitive controls. Turn it on, higher number is more hotter. Very simple.
Apparently it has other features, not bothered with them.
The interfaces are usually really bad, yes. The technology itself still makes up for this particular shortcoming, but they need to step up their game.
I cannot wait to finish uni and move to a place without a gas stove. The thing is they renoveated the kitchen just before I moved in but they decided to put in a gas stove for whatever reason.
idk - there should be some very clear cancer statistics to back up such a claim between countries like Sweden (<1% gas stoves, all are electric) vs other countries then.
One cause of cancer like this probably won’t be visible on a national scale, too many other factors come into play that will muddy the data
However, it’s not “idk”, the current science on gas stoves being bad for your health is quite clear. Not just cancer, but also for other lung-related issues like asthma: https://www.cancercenter.com/community/blog/2024/09/are-gas-stoves-bad-for-your-health
You're right - the report they link to here (Table 2 is good) makes that quite clear.
I read that running an extractor hood mitigates the risk a fair amount. Not completely, but enough that you shouldn’t worry if gas is your only option
Since this article is specifically about pm 2.5, I'm going to chime in and say I have a gas range with no extractor, and the only time my pm2.5 sensor picks anything up is when frying generates smoke and oil aerosols. That's more a function of cooking temperature than fuel, and my induction hotplate will generate just as much.
CO2? Definitely more with gas. Trace chemicals? Probably more with gas, but all the studies I've seen are just about running the cooktop, with no food, in a sealed room. Run the extraction hood or open a window when you cook - it's not just heat source.
The only thing I know gas stoves to be better at than other methods is traditional wok. But that's hardly a reason to jeopardize your health for.
I’ve been looking into a Wok-Pan for my glass top stove or my induction heater. I wonder how well those work.
You can actually get induction wok thingys.
The induction magnet is bowl shaped, so that when placed in it, the wok is heated all over.
They work, but apparently the really good ones are priced for business kitchens.
Only if you have the proper high btu burner
Exactly this. I went from a cheap gas stove to a nicer induction and my work cooking has improved greatly.
Which most people don't. Also I could buy a portable gas burner suitable for a wok and gas canister for less than the standing charge of gas for a year. Unless you are using a wok extremely often its not worth it.
I don't have a wok, high temperature cooking would be nice for a few things like searing steak though. But that can be done over a BBQ. Kinda want to try heating a cast iron griddle when the coals are still orange hot and searing steak on that. Although steak isn't something I cook very often partly because its really expensive. Presumably a fair bit less cooking time than the packaging recommends. I guess get the iron hot enough for the leidenfrost effect to start and then cook until nicely brown on each side and then take off the heat? With hot charcoal that would probably be something like 30-60 seconds each side.
gas stoves being better or faster than induction is a myth. They have certain specific advantages, but they are actually slower.
If you have 380/400V 16A induction, it's not even close.
But be careful, if you have ceramic coated pans for instance, and you use the high power settings to heat it up, your pans won't last long, as the ceramic may crack because of the fast heat up. We lost 2 pans that way. 😋
We also had a cheap cooking pot, where it developed a crack between the main pot and the apparently cheaply attached heat spreading bottom.
This made the pot sputter because water was collected in the crack when washed.
When I boil eggs, i time it from the moment the water is boiling. But with out new stove, the water boils so fast, I've had to add 2 minutes to the time they boil!!Our electric kettle is 2.2 kW. But boiling a liter of water on the stove is still more than twice as fast!! Meaning the stove must be putting more than 4.4 kW to the pot, on the smallest cooking spot!!
Obviously that is only possible for 1 spot at a time, I figure the max must be around 6kW combined.
They have certain specific advantages, but they are actually slower.
I can't think of any advantages, gas stoves are slower, they are harder to clean, they give off an insane amount of wasted heat, which is uncomfortable in hot weather, and they noticeably degrade air quality unless you have very good ventilation.
The only possible advantage I can think of, is that you can use cheaper equipment on gas. but not always, because non metal handles tend to get ruined on gas stoves.
All in all induction is superior. 😎
If you have 380V 16A induction, it's not even close.
Is that a common setup? That sounds very high-powered
This is very common in Denmark, and I suspect in much of Europe.
This is commonly used for stoves, ovens, dishwashers, dryers and washing machines. 30 years ago it was vastly dominant.
But today most 380/400v equipment can also run on 230/240v (2 phases instead of 3). Many now use standard 230/240v because most equipment has become more power efficient.PS: Apparently we actually have 400v for 3 phases. So our stove is 400v. I just chose the lower number to not exaggerate.
I've tried to find out why both numbers are used, and all I can find is that it's due to regional differences?I checked mine, which is a fairly basic model, and it's actually 400V.
Just FYI, I have gas heated water, and a gas stovetop. So I get around 55°C water to start, and the big burner is 5.5kW.
Still use lukewarm water in my kettle for tea. I mean what's the hurry?
Cooking isn't just heating stuff as fast as you can, what a curious thing to consider.
and the big burner is 5.5kW.
Yes, but there is enormous waste of heat with a gas stove, so your 5.5 kW big burner, is only equivalent to half of that compared to induction. Our smallest plate at 4.4+ kW is more powerful.
Cooking isn’t just heating stuff as fast as you can, what a curious thing to consider.
That's a straw man argument, I never claimed any such thing.
But the fast response time makes it easier to adjust correct temperature/levels, and this was for many years a major argument from users of gas, but this argument is completely irrelevant now.
I also mentioned other drawbacks of gas.PS: I NEVER use preheated water for cooking anything, preheated water is generally not meant for consumption. It needs to be designed for that specifically, so unless your preheated water is guaranteed food grade, you shouldn't use it.
I overall agree with technology connections on this with two caveats.
I have, in my day, used some truly craptastic electric stoves that seriously struggled to get a normal sized pot of water to a rolling boil. This was definitely the cheapest, crappiest stove that an Airbnb owner could possibly find to furnish the kitchen with.
I've also used some really crappy gas stoves but none have struggled that hard. So I think if you're scraping the bottom of the barrel for budget brand stoves, you may find yourself really frustrated with some electric options.
Also, my home stove is a somewhat less craptastic electric stove, but still not at all high end. I find that for some of my cookware the burners are too small resulting in some serious hotspots in the middle while you can barely cook on the outer edges even after letting the pan preheat for a decent amount of time. You're always going to have some amount of a hotspot with almost any stove, but this one is really drastic, and I've never experienced anything so bad on gas stoves, probably because the heat escaping around the edges manages to heat the outer parts of the pan a little better.
I'm not exactly pining for a gas stove, and I can't have one in this house even if I wanted one, but it is a little frustrating sometimes as someone who likes to cook, which technology connections has admitted is not one of his many niche interests.
My next stove will be induction, and probably every stove I ever buy after that.
I guess the overall takeaway from this is, if you're buying an electric stove and actually like to cook, don't cheap out and make sure you get one where the burners can handle the size cookware you might use.
I've also used some really crappy gas stoves but none have struggled that hard.
You must not be going to the right crappy AirBnBs, I've had gas stoves struggle to stay lit, which is not just bad for boiling water, now you've got a gas leak in the house!
Do you have more detail on this? What types of particulate matter exactly?
Not OP, but combustion byproducts/impurities mostly. Get a air quality sensor and watch it go mad when you start cooking.
The one real downside to induction is actually its speed. You can really easily burn your food very quickly if your not careful. IKEA sell an induction hot plate for $40AUD, well worth giving it a try.
Yes, a little bit… Burning any kind of fuel in your home is going to produce carcinogens.
But it’s really nothing to get too excited about, and cooking on electric is bullshit
As other people have said, induction is alright. Way better than traditional electric anyway.
More than alright, it's amazing
There are two kinds of electric. Induction, and coil. Are you talking about induction or coil?
I remember reading a study on this where all the scientists replaced their home ranges because the results were so bad.
Cooking in electric is fine, just different. I had an exposed coil stove for a while which was passable, but my glass top coil range is rather good. I grew up on gas and honestly my only complaint about electric is a bit slower heating time and it doesn't react as fast as I'd like, but it's not nearly as bad as people like to claim.
we have a decent quality induction range and electric stove and we'd never bother considering to go back to gas
I used to be 100% for gas ranges. Except for a couple of specific usecases, my 200v induction stove is great. I have a separate cannister gas stove if I want to really go to town on a wok or something. I've been converted.
It depends. A really good induction stove is fine. The cheap ones they put in rentals are all really annoying though. Bad UI is my main gripe with them honestly.
I think they are more than fine but bad UI is real
Yeah, I prefer my gas stovetop than any crappy induction.
Have they reinvented buttons yet or do you spend your time long-clicking and watching out not to short the touch-screen-top with 1 drop of water?
Jesting aside, induction is probably good but the bullshit that gas stoves causes cancer is just an unfounded lie. It's like being scared of the microwave owen or "3G mobile".