Gas Stoves may be Bad After All:
Scientists affiliated with the American Thoracic Society (ATS) have warned that cooking with natural gas may be a cause of certain lung diseases. At the 2024 ATS national meeting, a physician from San Francisco, representing the California Air Resources Board, noted that natural gas (methane) is a “potent greenhouse gas,” and cooking with it leads to high concentrations of nitrogen dioxide in inside air. Known for being “an irritant gas that can cause bronchoconstriction, airway hyperresponsiveness, and inflammation,” nitrogen dioxide also causes flare-ups of asthma and COPD. That means breathing natural gas has significant irritant effects on the bronchial tubes and lungs. From studies conducted over the past 10 years it is “estimated that 13% of childhood asthma could be prevented by eliminating gas cooking.”
Other researchers find the link between gas cooking and asthma was only significant for adults. “Indoor levels of nitrogen dioxide have been found to be twice as high in homes with gas stoves as in those homes with electric stoves….Burning natural gas produces particles in the air similar to those produced by burning coal, oil, or diesel fuel. So, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may actually have data to substantiate their position on banning gas stoves. Time will tell. Fortunately, it seems natural gas aggravates more than instigates lung problems. And any effects would be directly proportionate to the frequency and amount of natural gas exposure, and whether the individual has pre-existing lung disease. It is premature, then, to impose limitations on, or ban altogether, gas appliances—stoves, in particular!
Reference: Osterwell N. A Lot of Hot Air? Debate on Gas Stoves Points to Exacerbation, Not Cause. Medscape Medical News 2024 May 22;https://www, Medscape.news.org.
Physician Pay Increases by 3%:
Despite realizing a 3% increase in compensation doctors still face increasing overhead costs. The price of everything has gone up! Specialists still on average earn 44% more than primary care physicians (family med, peds, Int med), and women are paid between $40K to $100K less than their male counterparts. The five highest paid specialists are orthopedic surgery, plastic surgery, cardiology, urology, and gastroenterology. Ortho and plastics saw pay decreases but still topped the list. The bottom five in compensation were diabetes/endocrinology, pediatrics, infectious disease, preventive medicine, and family medicine. Just over half (51%) of doctors felt they were fairly compensated. To boost income, 61% of doctors did extra work, but only 20% of it was medically-related. Surprisingly, the public perception is that doctors are underpaid (61% said) and only 5% said docs were overpaid. The top five specialty docs who were happy with their pay were public health/preventive medicine specialists, dermatologists, psychiatrists, oncologists, and neurologists. The “nuts-and-bolts,” see-something-different-in-every-patient doctors, family physicians and pediatricians, are still on the bottom rung of the ladder. They always have been and always will be. That won’t change in my lifetime.
Reference: Medscape News and Perspectives; 2024 July 16.
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