See oh, too?

In case you’ve missed the news reports, and it seems like a lot of people actually have missed the memo, gas stoves are bad for you and the environment. But being married to a climatologist means I get to hear about these things and I’ve mentioned to some friends that the Spousal Unit is monitoring the carbon levels in the house.

If you’re thinking, oh, I’ve already got a carbon monitor in the house, you might be thinking of this:

This nifty device is a carbon monoxide detector and is a must-have in any house because CO is dangerous in even tiny amounts. According to the Iowa State University site, “High concentrations of carbon monoxide kill in less than five minutes. At low concentrations it will require a longer period of time to affect the body. Exceeding the EPA concentration of 9 ppm for more than 8 hours is suspected to produce adverse health affects in persons at risk.”

But it was my bad. When I was talking to those friends, I should have been more specific and said carbon dioxide monitoring because CO2 is a much different beast than CO. CO2 isn’t nearly as deadly in the short term and it takes a huge amount for you to notice it. After exposure to levels above 5,000 ppm for many hours, you might experience headache, dizziness, and nausea. CO2 can cause asphyxiation as it replaces oxygen in the blood-exposure to concentrations around 40,000 ppm and, at that point, is dangerous to life and health.

Buuuuut, CO2 levels serves as an indicator of the other things that comes off of a gas stove…the other things being carcinogenic or lung irritants. So the Spousal Unit monitors it in our house.

Plus, CO2 is a major greenhouse gas and cooking with gas contributes to the amount that’s already trapped in the atmosphere. So, now that we know, we’ll be shopping for an induction or electric range in the next couple of months. For the sake of your own health, especially if you have someone who’s prone to asthma, you might want to do likewise.