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Credible, Evidence-Based Information on the Health Impacts of Gas-Fueled Stoves

(Finalized and posted August 4, 2025)

This information implements Section 25-5-1602(4), C.R.S., which requires the department to post on a public website credible, evidence-based information on the health impacts of gas-fueled stoves. Along with the cited sources of evidence-based information, the department also compared this content to the information provided by other state governments for consistency.

Learn about the health risks associated with the indoor use of gas-fueled stoves and the steps you can take to improve indoor air quality if using a gas-fueled stove.

Indoor Air Quality

  • Gas stoves burn natural gas or propane to produce heat.
  • There is evidence that particulate matter (PM), nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, benzene, formaldehyde, and methane can be released into indoor air from gas stoves.1
  • According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, indoor air pollutants can build up to levels that may affect people’s health if the space is not properly ventilated.2

Health Risks from Indoor Air Pollution Associated with Gas Stoves

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and numerous studies, the risk to someone’s health depends on:

  • The amount and type of pollutants in the air,
  • How long and how often someone breathes polluted air, and
  • Individual factors like age, health, and lifestyle.3
  • People with underlying conditions such as asthma, young children, older adults, and people who are more sensitive to pollutants may be more likely to experience health impacts.4

Health Impacts from Indoor Air Pollution Associated with Gas Stoves

  • Can include headaches, nausea, eye, nose, or throat irritation, respiratory symptoms, and worsening asthma symptoms.5
  • Breathing high levels of indoor air pollution associated with gas stoves and other sources, breathing it more frequently, or over long periods of time, can increase the risk of developing chronic heart and lung diseases, asthma, impacts to the immune system, and some cancers, such as leukemia6 , or cancers of the nose and throat.7

Steps You Can Take to Improve Your Indoor Air Quality if You Use a Gas Stove

In the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s “The Inside Story: A Guide to Indoor Air Quality,”8 they recommend:

  • Properly install and maintain your gas stove according to the manufacturer’s specifications.
  • If you have one, turn on your stove hood while cooking to help remove pollutants from indoor air. Clean and replace the hood filters per the manufacturer's instructions.
  • Utilize hoods that vent to the outside to dilute indoor air pollution.
  • Never use a gas stove to heat your home.
  • When buying a new gas stove, consider a model with pilotless ignition. Pilotless gas stoves use less gas and release fewer pollutants into the air.
  • Portable air cleaners, such as an air purifier, or furnace/HVAC filters, can help improve indoor air quality.
  • Decrease pollution exposure by increasing the amount of outdoor air coming into your home - open windows and doors, and turn on ceiling fans.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

  • For more information about gas stove use and indoor air pollution, contact CDPHE’s ToxCall line at 303-692-2606 or cdphe_toxcall@state.co.us.
  • To learn more about indoor air quality, visit the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Indoor Air Quality website.

FOOTNOTES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY OF RELIED UPON CREDIBLE, EVIDENCE-BASED INFORMATION

FOOTNOTES

  1. See U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Indoor Air Quality, “Introduction to Air Quality”. See also bibliography. ↩︎
  2. See EPA, Indoor Air Quality, “The Inside Story: A Guide to Indoor Air Quality”. See also bibliography. ↩︎
  3. See bibliography. ↩︎
  4. See bibliography. ↩︎
  5. See EPA, Indoor Air Quality, “Introduction to Indoor Air Quality”. See also bibliography. ↩︎
  6. See bibliography. ↩︎ See also EPA “Benzene”.
  7. See bibliography. ↩︎ See also Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), “Public Health Statement Formaldehyde”.
  8. See EPA, Indoor Air Quality, “The Inside Story: A Guide to Indoor Air Quality”. See also bibliography. ↩︎

BIBLIOGRAPHY

  1. U.S. Energy Information Administration, a semi-independent agency under the U.S. Department of Energy, “Residential Energy Consumption Survey”.
  2. U.S. Government Accountability Office, “Gas Stoves: Risks and Safety Standards Related to Products and Ventilation,” (March 18, 2025, GAO-25-107514).
  3. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “Indoor Air Quality”.
  4. American Chemical Society, Environmental Science & Technology, Energy and Climate, “Methane and NOx Emissions from Natural Gas Stoves, Cooktops, and Ovens in Residential Homes,” Eric D. Lebel, Colin J. Finnegan, Zutao Ouyand, and Robert B. Jackson, (Vol 56, Issue 4, January 27, 2022).
  5. National Institute of Health, National Library of Medicine, PublicMed Central, Environmental Health Perspectives, “Clearing the Air: Gas Stove Emissions and Direct Health Effects,” (February 18, 2024, 132(2):022001. doi: 10.1289/EHP14180).
  6. EPA “Sources of Combustion Products”.
  7. Journal of Hazardous Materials, “Exposure and health risks of benzene from combustion by gas stoves: A modelling approach to U.S. homes,” (Vol 492, July 15, 2025, 137986).
  8. EPA, Indoor Air Quality, “Nitrogen Dioxide’s Impact on Indoor Air Quality”.
  9. EPA, Indoor Air Quality, “Carbon Monoxide’s Impact on Indoor Air Quality”.
  10. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, “Benzene ToxFAQs”.
  11. EPA, Indoor Air Quality, “What should I know about formaldehyde and indoor air quality?”.
  12. CDC “Benzene Chemical Fact Sheet”.
  13. EPA, Indoor Air Quality, “Protect Your Family and Yourself from Carbon Monoxide Poisoning”.
  14. EPA “Basic Information about NO2”.
  15. EPA, Particle Pollution and Your Patients’ Health, “What is Particle Pollution”.
  16. EPA, Particulate Matter Pollution, “Health and Environmental Effects of Particulate Matter”.
  17. EPA, Indoor Air Quality, “Sources of Indoor Particulate Matter”.

Other State Governments’ Information:

  1. Washington State Health Department, “Cooking Impacts of Indoor Air Quality, Health, and Climate”.
  2. Minnesota Department of Health, “Residential Gas Stoves”.
  3. California Air Resource Board (CARB), “Combustion Pollutants in Your Home - Guidelines”.
  4. CARB, “Reducing Your Exposure to Indoor Air Pollution”.
  5. Illinois Department of Public Health, “Air Quality in the Home”.