The combustion of solid fuels generates certain effluents such as black carbon and carbon dioxide that are harmful to human health. Substantial evidence suggest that these substances are among the leading cause of non-communicable diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, acute lower respiratory infections in children, strokes, lung cancer and heart attacks, particularly, in countries that are termed “low-income”. By employing the ARDL model, this study investigated the suspected link between consuming clean energy and public health outcomes in Nigeria from 1990 to 2022. Empirical findings revealed that renewable energy utilization and access to clean cooking energy technologies increased public health outcomes by reducing air pollution related mortality, while exposure to CO2 and black carbon led to a decreased public health outcome by increasing mortality resulting from air pollution. Considering the Nigerian perspective, these results underscore the impact of green transition on public health outcomes in addition to the influence on environmental quality. Global attempts towards ensuring a just transition to and increasing the share of more renewable energy will in addition to drastically reducing carbon emissions and its consequent damage on the climate, lead to a robust reduction in health costs incurred due to air pollution.