Indoor air pollution by solid fuel usages for cooking is longitudinally associated with possible sarcopenia in middle-aged Chinese population

Guo Ming Su; Ke Xin Jia; Jun Yi Liu; Xu Chen; Yi Lin Shen; Jia Jing Cai; Qi Wei Guo; Jia Lin; Ding Zhi Fang

doi:10.1007/s40201-024-00911-3

Indoor air pollution by solid fuel usages for cooking is longitudinally associated with possible sarcopenia in middle-aged Chinese population

J Environ Health Sci Eng. 2024 Jun 18;22(2):519-531. doi: 10.1007/s40201-024-00911-3. eCollection 2024 Dec.

Authors

Guo Ming Su¹, Ke Xin Jia¹, Jun Yi Liu¹, Xu Chen¹, Yi Lin Shen¹, Jia Jing Cai¹, Qi Wei Guo¹, Jia Lin¹, Ding Zhi Fang¹

Affiliation

¹ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, West China School of Basic Medical Sciences & Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041 P. R. China.

PMID: 39464816
PMCID: PMC11499476 (available on 2025-06-18)
DOI: 10.1007/s40201-024-00911-3

Abstract

Objectives: The Asia Working Group of Sarcopenia (AWGS) 2019 consensus proposed a new concept named "possible sarcopenia". The present study was to estimate the association between indoor air pollution by solid fuel usages for cooking and possible sarcopenia among middle-aged and older Chinese population.

Methods: A longitudinal cohort analysis was carried out using nationally representative data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). A total of 17,708 participants were recruited and followed up in the CHARLS. Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate the effects of cooking fuel usages on the new onset of possible sarcopenia. Stratified analyses were performed according to gender and age, and sensitivity analyses were performed using the complete dataset.

Results: A total of 4,653 participants were included in the final cohort analysis. During the follow-up of 4 years (2011-2015), a total of 1,532 (32.92%) participants developed new-onset possible sarcopenia. Compared with clean fuel usages for cooking, solid fuel usages were associated with a higher risk of possible sarcopenia (HR = 1.37, 95% CI = 1.23-1.52, p-value < 0.001). After adjusting for potential confounders, there was a trend for association between solid fuel usages and an increased risk of possible sarcopenia. Stratified analyses by gender and age demonstrated a stronger association of the solid fuel usages with possible sarcopenia in the middle-aged female participants (Model 1: HR = 1.83, 95% CI = 1.24-2.69, p-value = 0.002; Model 2: HR = 1.65, 95% CI = 1.10-2.47, p-value = 0.016). Sensitivity analyses indicated that the results were robust.

Conclusion: Indoor air pollution from solid fuel usages for cooking was a modifiable risk factor for sarcopenia, especially in middle-aged female population. These findings provide a new prevention strategy to reduce the growing burden of sarcopenia, especially for middle-aged female individuals using solid fuels for cooking.

Keywords: Cohort study; Indoor air pollution; Middle-aged adults; Possible sarcopenia.

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