The gas burners may have some health drawbacks also. Induction seems to be clean.

Natural gas ranges, while convenient, release pollutants like nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide, and potentially benzene, which can negatively impact indoor air quality and health, especially for people with respiratory conditions. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Here's a more detailed breakdown of the pollutants and their potential effects:
Pollutants and Their Effects: [1, 3, 4, 5]

• Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2): [1, 3, 4, 5]

  • A major byproduct of burning natural gas, NO2 is a known respiratory irritant. [1, 3, 4, 5]
  • It can trigger asthma attacks and worsen respiratory conditions. [1, 3, 4, 5]
  • Even in low concentrations, NO2 can cause breathing problems. [2, 4]
  • Studies have shown that kids who live in a home with a gas stove have about a 20% increased risk of developing respiratory illness. [2]

• Carbon Monoxide: [1, 3, 4, 5]

  • An odorless, colorless, and potentially deadly gas. [1, 3, 4, 5]
  • Can be produced during incomplete combustion of natural gas. [1, 3, 4, 5]

• Benzene: [3, 5]

  • A known human carcinogen. [3, 5]
  • Studies have shown that gas stoves can emit benzene, even when not in use, according to Yale Climate Connections. [3, 6]
  • Benzene can be found in unburned methane gas. [7]

• Other Pollutants: [3]

  • Gas stoves can also release formaldehyde, a respiratory irritant and known human carcinogen. [3]
  • Cooking with gas can also emit particulate matter, which can have health impacts on the heart and lungs. [8]

• Methane: [1, 9, 10]

  • A potent greenhouse gas, methane is a major component of natural gas. [1, 9, 10]
  • Leaking methane from gas stoves contributes to climate change. [1, 9, 10]
  • Stanford researchers estimate that methane leaking from stoves inside U.S. homes has the same climate impact as about 500,000 gasoline-powered cars. [1]

Generative AI is experimental.[1] https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2024/05/people-with-gas-and-propane-stoves-breathe-more-unhealthy-nitrogen-dioxide[2] https://www.npr.org/2021/10/07/1015460605/gas-stove-emissions-climate-change-health-effects[3] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10901287/[4] https://www.psehealthyenergy.org/gas-stoves-and-indoor-air-pollution-explained/[5] https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/analysis-why-federal-regulators-are-considering-new-safety-rules-for-gas-stoves[6] https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2023/06/gas-stoves-even-worse-for-health-than-previously-known/[7] https://homes.rewiringamerica.org/articles/induction/dangers-of-gas-stoves[8] https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2023/04/25/the-truth-about-gas-stoves/[9] https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/have-a-gas-stove-how-to-reduce-pollution-that-may-harm-health-202209072811[10] https://environmentamerica.org/center/articles/are-gas-stoves-bad-for-the-climate/[-] https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2024/05/people-with-gas-and-propane-stoves-breathe-more-unhealthy-nitrogen-dioxide[-] https://earth.stanford.edu/earthmatters/climate-change?page=1

Oh, if only my wife were convinced by carcinogenic pollutants in our air! She is the primary cook, and is extremely resistant to change. She GOT to have that gas! :( Gas-induction is my way of hoping to get her hooked on induction so we can EVENTUALLY get rid of gas altogether.

My solution is to have induction inside and a double gas burner outside in the outdoor kitchen. I cook messy or smelly foods outside.

The Thermador PRD48WISGU is $19,150 and the SKS SKSDR480SIS is $16,000. How about the 30" gas Smeg SPR30UGGX ($3500) side by side with the 24" induction Smeg SPR24UIMX ($3500)? I assume you do not want cooktop(s) over a wall oven.

Here's a Miele video directly comparing their gas and induction. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWv1RhZzD0k&t=34s

A single cook and a 48" cooktop is necessary? Miele has a new 36" induction range coming with steam oven.

I actually found that the sous-vide section can be used for other cooking methods as well, like keeping sauces or stocks at a low simmer for long periods without risk of burning or reducing. I have this burner range from Ilve, am I safe?

...or the 24" gas SMEG SPR24UGGX ($2600) side by side with the 24" induction Smeg SPR24UIMX ($3500) for a total width of 48".

Thank you all for your helpful suggestions! I have in fact explored combining a gas and an induction rangetop with wall ovens, but my wife is partial not only to gas but to the look/feel of ranges.

The solution I'm considering is to add some InvisaCook elements next to the range for additional simmer zones in case she gets to like induction. This way she'll have 2 induction "power" burners on the 48" range (right now looking like SKS) plus 4 simmer zones. I've heard InvisaCook does not boil very fast. :)

@opaone, I read your blog, thank you, it was very informative. All your choices are deliberate, logical, and well-researched. Sounds like while you have both gas and induction, you strongly prefer gas over induction. I've had a bad experience with gross deposits in icemaker water lines, but you've also talked me back into an ice maker. And I love your genius timer idea to minimize wasting energy! Also I found out SubZero's icemaker has a daily timer function!

As for your question of the safety of induction, I would make the following logical appeals:

1. On its face, your premise that EM radiation might be as dangerous as gas (or more) sound balanced and open-minded. But a known danger and a theoretical danger are not equivalent. I strongly prefer something that has no known dangers over something that has known dangers. The trouble with the theoretical dangers is, well, anything is technically possible, and that allows room for a lot of fears (remember COVID vaccines causing people to turn into magnets?). I have found that our brains' survival center is sticky, and once a theoretical (unproven) danger binds there, it's nearly impossible for real dangers to dislodge it. Case in point: current measles epidemic, 2 children dead, or >1M Americans dead from COVID. Fear of unknown side effects and/or fear of government overreach numbed many Americans' fear of death.

2. Humans are resistant to change. Add to that our bias toward trusting our eyes, and it's hard to take seriously the dangers posed by invisible, odorless things like the combustion products of methane (NO2, carbon monoxide, VOCs, sulfur dioxide), or plasticizers (some of which are already known to cause cancer), or microplastics or nanoplastics (seem to increase risk of heart attacks), or viruses, for that matter. It's much easier to fear something visible (like vaccines) or audible (like the hum of an induction element?)

3. EM radiation dissipates by a square of the distance, so rapidly in fact that water boils in 2 min through 4mm of glass, but >10 minutes through 1 cm of granite (anecdotal from InvisaCook users). I note that theoretical brain cancer risk from cell phone use did not materialize despite being held directly to our heads.

Anyway I'm not trying to pick a fight, just trying to appeal to reason! Thanks again for your very helpful blog post. Back to my icemaker hunt!

I don't disagree with you. However...

There's a little bit of the monster we know v the one we don't. We have a much better handle, I think, on the risks with gas and can mitigate them. We don't know the risks (physiological) with induction (or really anything anywhere on the spectrum). We're not even sure how to accurately measure EMF.

Cooking, gas or induction, produces harmful stuff - we need the same ventilation for both. That ventilation, done properly, mitigates much of the harm from gas as well as cooking but does nothing to mitigate any potential harm from EM.

Even if I preferred induction over gas I'm not sure I'd want to use it often until we know more. But I prefer gas for most things so that makes it an easier decision. :-)

@opaone Rational but practical response, as I expected. Makes sense for people with great venting, which is you and 1% of cooks maybe. LOL You can rule out anyone with an OTR microwave hood, a hood <27" deep or the same width as their cooktop… and 99.9% of apartment/condo dwellers (like me).

We're about to do a remodel, and my wife also strongly prefers gas, so I just hope our condo building has decent-sized exhaust ducts to blow into.