Health benefits of energy efficient homes examined
A ground-breaking £220,000 study into the possible health benefits of improving the homes of people with lung disease is about to get underway in Aberdeen.
Environmental health researchers at the University of Aberdeen and doctors working at the Chest Clinic at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary are collaborating on the major project with Aberdeen City Council and the Aberdeen Affordable Warmth Scheme, managed by Castlehill Housing Association.
The HEARTH (Home Environment and Respiratory Health) Study – funded to the tune of £155,000 by the charity Eaga Partnership Charitable Trust, with an additional £65,000 from Communities Scotland – could shape future housing policy in the UK.
The project will explore how housing factors such as effective insulation and energy efficient heating are related to humidity, temperature and particle concentrations within homes. The study will test if improving energy efficiency has benefits for the health and quality of life of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) also known as chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
Dr Liesl Osman, Senior Research Fellow, University of Aberdeen said: “We don’t know if poor heating and energy inefficient homes do worsen COPD and that is what we intend to find out.
“What we do know is that exacerbations of the condition account for about one in eight of all medical admissions to hospital and 5% of all deaths in the UK. In fact it’s the only chronic disease in the UK with a rising death rate.”
Janice Lyon, Home Energy Co-ordinator with Aberdeen City Council, added: “Common sense suggests that living in a home that is difficult and expensive to heat is bad for your health, but we need to see whether common sense is backed up by the evidence from this study.”
Letters are currently being sent to people who have been admitted to hospital with COPD in the last 18 months - both owner-occupiers and tenants.
Those who initially agree to become involved in the study will be visited by an energy surveyor who will gather information on a number of aspects of their home, including the amount of fuel needed to heat the house, the level of insulation and the type of heating and hot water systems.
Dr Graham Douglas, Head of Service at the Chest Clinic, Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, added: “The aim of the study is to find out how far heating in chest patients’ homes reaches acceptable standards. We need to survey homes which have good heating and insulation as well as homes which are not at a satisfactory standard so we can better understand how home heating affects chest illness.”
If the Heating Survey indicates that the home could benefit from improvements in heating, participants will be invited to take part in the next study: Improvement of Affordable Warmth in Homes of Patients with Chest Illness. Monitors will be installed in houses to measure changes in temperature, dampness and air pollution, after heating improvements, and the chest health of participants will be assessed over the next 12 months.
The University’s Professor Jon Ayres – a leading expert in air pollution and in COPD - is one of the collaborators in the project which gets underway next month and will run for three years.