Your new experience awaits. Try the new design now and help us make it even better

ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Glob. Women’s Health

Sec. Maternal Health

Volume 6 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fgwh.2025.1636924

Unclean Cooking Fuel Use and Stillbirth in Ghana: Evidence from the 2022 DHS

Provisionally accepted
Kirstin  P WestKirstin P West1,2,3Kristin  K. SznajderKristin K. Sznajder2,3Grace  HwangGrace Hwang2Hannah  E. SauveHannah E. Sauve4Kedir  Teji RobaKedir Teji Roba2,5,6Leonard  BAATIEMALeonard BAATIEMA7Ernest  KenuErnest Kenu7Charles  L. NooraCharles L. Noora7Abraham  Tamirat GizawAbraham Tamirat Gizaw8Abebayehu  N. YilmaAbebayehu N. Yilma2,3*
  • 1University of Washington, Seattle, United States
  • 2Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, United States
  • 3Penn State Institute of Energy and the Environment, University Park, PA, United States
  • 4Boston University, Boston, United States
  • 5The Pennsylvania State University College of Health and Human Development, University Park, United States
  • 6Haramaya University College of Health and Medical Sciences, Dire Dawa, Ethiopia
  • 7University of Ghana School of Public Health, Accra, Ghana
  • 8Jimma University Institute of Health, Jimma, Ethiopia

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

Introduction: Stillbirth remains a major public health issue in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). Ghana's 2021 stillbirth rate (21.4 per 1,000 births) exceeds the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of 12 per 1,000 births by 2030. Unclean household cooking fuels have been associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes, including stillbirth. In Ghana, women conduct about 64% of household cooking, often in poorly ventilated settings with particulate levels above World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. We assessed the association between household cooking fuel type and stillbirth among Ghanaian women. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis using data from the 2022 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey. The sample included 10,654 women aged 15–49 years with ≥1 recorded pregnancy. The primary exposure was household cooking fuel (clean vs. unclean per WHO guidelines). Outcomes were (1) stillbirth, defined as fetal loss at ≥7 months' gestation, and (2) stillbirth rate per 1,000 total births. Survey-weighted bivariate screening (p<0.05) identified candidate covariates for inclusion in multivariable, survey-weighted logistic regression models. Adjusted odds ratios (AORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were reported. Given the cross-sectional design, estimates reflect associations, not causation. Results: The overall stillbirth rate was 15.85 per 1,000 births. Unclean cooking fuel use was associated with 44% higher odds of stillbirth (AOR: 1.44; 95% CI: 1.05–1.99; p=0.0258). Other factors associated with higher odds were age ≥30 years (AOR: 2.17; 95% CI: 1.59–2.95; p<0.001), moderate-to-poor health (AOR: 1.78; 95% CI: 1.39–2.28; p<0.001), and alcohol consumption (AOR: 1.43; 95% CI: 1.06–1.93; p=0.0195). Discussion: In this nationally representative sample, unclean cooking fuel use was associated with increased odds of stillbirth. Expanding access to clean fuels and leveraging antenatal care services for culturally responsive clean-energy counseling may help reduce stillbirth risk. Prospective studies with exposure monitoring are needed to establish temporality.

Keywords: Stillbirth, Unclean cooking fuel, Household air pollution, Maternal health, Environmental risk factors, Ghana, Demographic and Health Survey

Received: 28 May 2025; Accepted: 06 Oct 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 West, Sznajder, Hwang, Sauve, Roba, BAATIEMA, Kenu, Noora, Gizaw and Yilma. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Abebayehu N. Yilma, any5126@psu.edu

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.