Stay healthy in the warm zone

Nov 18 2008 by Francesca Craggs, The Journal

Dave Stephens

THE health impact of cold, damp homes, and the importance of promoting affordable warmth to address socio-economic inequalities in health and promote social inclusion are now recognised on the national policy agenda.

Energy inefficient, hard to heat housing impacts on health in three main ways:

Housing conditions, such as cold and dampness, have a negative health impact

The additional expense incurred by low income households trying to heat poor housing reduces household resources available to protect or promote health in other ways and causes financial hardship, which in turn impacts negatively on health

Energy inefficiency impacts on the economy and the environment as a whole, with long-term health impact on the population

There is now robust national and international evidence for the negative impact on health of poor housing, and in particular cold and damp housing. There is also overwhelming evidence of the negative health impact of poverty and low income.

Living in cold and damp homes exacerbates illnesses such as asthma, bronchitis, heart disease, eczema and can exacerbate mental health problems.

Cold and damp homes foster pathogens such as moulds and dust mites, which impact on health.

A young person who suffers from asthma because of their home conditions is likely to miss more days at school, whilst the same conditions means older people having more days off work.

Living in poor quality housing can cause emotional distress and increase susceptibility to physical illness and mental health problems. People on low incomes are more likely to live in poor quality housing that costs more to heat. This reduces their resources available to protect their health in other ways, such as eating healthier food.

Addressing home energy inefficiency can alleviate cold-related illnesses, reduce associated hospital admissions and avoid some people being kept in hospital longer than otherwise necessary. All this means significant savings for the health service, which means they then have more income to tackle other serious medical issues.

Older people, children, disabled people and those with long-term illnesses are all more vulnerable to the effects of cold and damp, but they are also more likely to be spending most of their time at home. Again a vicious circle of poor health and cold homes, creating the revolving door problems associated with repetitive hospital care.

So what can be done about it? While all that sounds like bad news, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and Northumberland Warm Zone have offers which shine through the energy bill gloom. Free insulation is on offer to over 60s and to households with children under five, and you don’t even have to be on benefits to qualify for these works.

However if you don’t fit into this criteria then being on certain benefits again qualifies many more people. However, even better is that anyone else can have the work done for only £129 per measure, and in Castle Morpeth this comes down even further to only £99. Now that really is an offer to cheer everyone up.

In Northumberland, Warm Zone staff do their best to give people help and advice on insulating their homes and therefore reducing heating costs. They also have a dedicated benefits officer, Lisa Oxley, who can offer professional and confidential advice to clients either on the phone or in their own homes. To date, more than £500,000 has been won by Lisa for Northumberland residents who weren’t claiming what they were entitled to. Lisa can be contacted on (01670) 356624.

Dave Stephens is Network and Communications Manager at Warm Zone

Householders wanting more information on having insulation work done completely free or at reduced cost, simply ring the Warm Zone team on (01670) 356642. The simple installation of cavity wall and/or loft insulation measures can stop the loss of around 60% of heat generated and make a home warmer, drier and healthier. Simple measures that mean a big difference!