SELECT SUITABLE FABRICS FOR KITCHEN: PAU HOME SCIENTISTS

LUDHIANA, JUNE 15:2012

The kitchen is the heart of every home as food plays a vital role in daily lives. If proper care not taken, serious fatal accidents such as kitchen fires can take place, cautioned the home scientists of the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU). Major cause of kitchen fires is the wrong clothing worn by the cook, said the experts of Department of Clothing and Textiles, while emphasizing the home makers that clothing as well as fabrics used in kitchens should be selected with utmost care.



Referring to the suitable clothing, the expert Dr Surabhi Mahajan said that cellulosic (plant origin) fabrics are safe and more suitable for kitchen use. They are available in different forms like cotton, jute, linen, hemp, ramie, etc. She added that the important features of cotton which makes it the most preferable kitchen fabric are its comfort, softness, capacity to absorb and release perspiration quickly, machine-washable, easy to handle and sew and flame retardant. The oil and ghee stains can be removed from it easily, she observed.



Elaborating, Dr Inderjeet Kaur said that linen is the most luxurious, expensive and elegant type of kitchen fabric, made from vegetable fibres. Linen has many properties such as comfort, good strength, gets softer with each wash, crisp hand, absorbent, no static or pilling problems and good conductor of heat. Dr Kaur told that rayon is a versatile fibre and has the same comfort properties as natural fibres.



Imparting useful tips for healthy and safe work in kitchen, the home scientists advised the home makers that clothing worn should cover maximum body parts so that in case any hot oil drop spills over the body, some damage to the skin can be prevented. Do not wear synthetic, loose fit and extra long sleeves garments while cooking because they have chance of coming into contact with fire easily, they said. The chappati wrappers should be made of thick white cotton fabric like khaddar, so that in case they get oil and ghee stains, they can be boiled, washed and bleached. They suggested that kitchen dusters should also be made of cotton fabric so that they can be cleaned easily by kneading and beating.
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