Residential environmental risks for reproductive age women in developing countries.

Published research suggests there is an association between maternal inhalation of common ambient air pollutants and adverse birth outcomes, including an increased risk for preterm delivery, intrauterine growth retardation, small head circumference, low birth weight, and increased rate of malformations. The air pollutants produced by indoor combustion of biomass fuels, used by 50% of households worldwide, have been linked to acute lower respiratory infections, the single most important cause of mortality in children under the age of 5. This report describes a hypothesis-generating study in West Wollega, Ethiopia, conducted to assess airborne particulate matter concentrations in homes that combust biomass fuels (biomass homes).