The Association Between Occupational Smoke Exposures and the Prevalence of Eye and Respiratory Health Conditions Among Commercial Fish Smokers in Abuesi, Ghana: A Cross-Sectional Self-Reported Study
Biomass smoke exposure represents a critical health concern, especially for those in occupational settings such as fish smoking. While substantial research has addressed indoor air pollution from domestic cooking, the specific risks faced by fish smokers have received insufficient attention. This st...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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SAGE Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Environmental Health Insights |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1177/11786302251317056 |
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| author | Charity Owusu Albert Ofori Frank Adusei-Mensah Carl Halladay Abraham Samuel Kyei Reginald Quansah David Kofi Essumang |
| author_facet | Charity Owusu Albert Ofori Frank Adusei-Mensah Carl Halladay Abraham Samuel Kyei Reginald Quansah David Kofi Essumang |
| author_sort | Charity Owusu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Biomass smoke exposure represents a critical health concern, especially for those in occupational settings such as fish smoking. While substantial research has addressed indoor air pollution from domestic cooking, the specific risks faced by fish smokers have received insufficient attention. This study sheds light on the alarming relationship between smoke exposure and health issues among commercial fish smokers in Abuesi, Ghana. Through a comprehensive cross-sectional analysis involving 302 participants, we utilized structured questionnaires and expert eye assessments to gather vital data. Our statistical evaluation, including descriptive statistics, ANOVA, and chi-square tests, revealed a troubling prevalence of respiratory symptoms such as cough, asthma, and breathlessness, all significantly linked to prolonged smoke exposure. Eye health findings were equally concerning, with distant vision impairment affecting 26.37%, eye discomfort reported at 53.02%, and notable rates of cataracts (28.6%) and refractive errors (17.9%). For those suffering from breathlessness, asthma, and pneumonia, the data indicated that longer exposure durations correlated with more severe health outcomes. Specifically, subjects without breathlessness had an average smoking duration of 14.84 years (SD = 12.29) compared to just 10.26 years (SD = 11.15) for those with the symptom—a statistically significant P -value of .014. Asthma and pneumonia exhibited similar trends, highlighting a distressing reality: shorter smoking histories align with more severe health conditions, suggesting that such symptoms might drive smokers to abandon their practices prematurely. Given the serious health risks tied to traditional fish smoking practices, this study strongly advocates for the implementation of improved smoking technologies, better ventilation systems, and comprehensive health education initiatives. These measures are essential to safeguard the health of those involved in this vital industry and reduce exposure to hazardous smoke. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-60c1c48ae8924f3a9fa0920e03903296 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1178-6302 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | SAGE Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Environmental Health Insights |
| spelling | doaj-art-60c1c48ae8924f3a9fa0920e039032962025-01-30T14:03:27ZengSAGE PublishingEnvironmental Health Insights1178-63022025-01-011910.1177/11786302251317056The Association Between Occupational Smoke Exposures and the Prevalence of Eye and Respiratory Health Conditions Among Commercial Fish Smokers in Abuesi, Ghana: A Cross-Sectional Self-Reported StudyCharity Owusu0Albert Ofori1Frank Adusei-Mensah2Carl Halladay Abraham3Samuel Kyei4Reginald Quansah5David Kofi Essumang6Department of Chemistry, School of Physical Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, GhanaDepartment of Chemistry, School of Physical Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, GhanaFaculty of Health Sciences, Institute of Public Health and Clinical Nutrition, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, FinlandDepartment of Optometry and Vision Science, College of Health and Allied Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, GhanaBiomedical and Clinical Research Centre, College of Health and Allied Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, GhanaDepartment of Biological, Environmental and Occupational Health, University of Ghana, Accra, GhanaDepartment of Chemistry, School of Physical Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, GhanaBiomass smoke exposure represents a critical health concern, especially for those in occupational settings such as fish smoking. While substantial research has addressed indoor air pollution from domestic cooking, the specific risks faced by fish smokers have received insufficient attention. This study sheds light on the alarming relationship between smoke exposure and health issues among commercial fish smokers in Abuesi, Ghana. Through a comprehensive cross-sectional analysis involving 302 participants, we utilized structured questionnaires and expert eye assessments to gather vital data. Our statistical evaluation, including descriptive statistics, ANOVA, and chi-square tests, revealed a troubling prevalence of respiratory symptoms such as cough, asthma, and breathlessness, all significantly linked to prolonged smoke exposure. Eye health findings were equally concerning, with distant vision impairment affecting 26.37%, eye discomfort reported at 53.02%, and notable rates of cataracts (28.6%) and refractive errors (17.9%). For those suffering from breathlessness, asthma, and pneumonia, the data indicated that longer exposure durations correlated with more severe health outcomes. Specifically, subjects without breathlessness had an average smoking duration of 14.84 years (SD = 12.29) compared to just 10.26 years (SD = 11.15) for those with the symptom—a statistically significant P -value of .014. Asthma and pneumonia exhibited similar trends, highlighting a distressing reality: shorter smoking histories align with more severe health conditions, suggesting that such symptoms might drive smokers to abandon their practices prematurely. Given the serious health risks tied to traditional fish smoking practices, this study strongly advocates for the implementation of improved smoking technologies, better ventilation systems, and comprehensive health education initiatives. These measures are essential to safeguard the health of those involved in this vital industry and reduce exposure to hazardous smoke.https://doi.org/10.1177/11786302251317056 |
| spellingShingle | Charity Owusu Albert Ofori Frank Adusei-Mensah Carl Halladay Abraham Samuel Kyei Reginald Quansah David Kofi Essumang The Association Between Occupational Smoke Exposures and the Prevalence of Eye and Respiratory Health Conditions Among Commercial Fish Smokers in Abuesi, Ghana: A Cross-Sectional Self-Reported Study Environmental Health Insights |
| title | The Association Between Occupational Smoke Exposures and the Prevalence of Eye and Respiratory Health Conditions Among Commercial Fish Smokers in Abuesi, Ghana: A Cross-Sectional Self-Reported Study |
| title_full | The Association Between Occupational Smoke Exposures and the Prevalence of Eye and Respiratory Health Conditions Among Commercial Fish Smokers in Abuesi, Ghana: A Cross-Sectional Self-Reported Study |
| title_fullStr | The Association Between Occupational Smoke Exposures and the Prevalence of Eye and Respiratory Health Conditions Among Commercial Fish Smokers in Abuesi, Ghana: A Cross-Sectional Self-Reported Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Association Between Occupational Smoke Exposures and the Prevalence of Eye and Respiratory Health Conditions Among Commercial Fish Smokers in Abuesi, Ghana: A Cross-Sectional Self-Reported Study |
| title_short | The Association Between Occupational Smoke Exposures and the Prevalence of Eye and Respiratory Health Conditions Among Commercial Fish Smokers in Abuesi, Ghana: A Cross-Sectional Self-Reported Study |
| title_sort | association between occupational smoke exposures and the prevalence of eye and respiratory health conditions among commercial fish smokers in abuesi ghana a cross sectional self reported study |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1177/11786302251317056 |
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