The link between poor housing conditions and ill health was proven decades ago, so why are tenants still being blamed, ask Stephen Platt, Dr Claudia Martin and Dr Sonja Hunt. Plus letters from Nik Wood, Steven Chown and Norman Miller
Awaab Ishak’s death from exposure to mould is a shocking and wholly preventable tragedy (Report, 15 November). The risk to health caused by poor housing conditions has been established for more than 30 years. Research we published in the 1980s exposed the impact of damp and mould on children’s respiratory symptoms, with clear evidence of a dose-response relationship, such that those exposed to greater concentrations of mould were at greater risk of ill health. Crucially, the relationship between ill health and housing conditions was independent of lifestyle factors such as smoking in the household, how people dried their clothes and pet ownership.
On the contrary, there was evidence that condensation, dampness and mould were a consequence of poor building standards, lack of insulation and poor ventilation. The study received considerable media attention at the time and was cited in successful court actions. Several housing authorities took action to upgrade houses and a tenants’ group in Glasgow won an EU grant to improve their heating systems, ventilation and insulation. It is, therefore, depressing and infuriating that successive Tory governments continue to blame tenants for their housing conditions and their ill health.
Stephen Platt
Emeritus professor of health policy research, University of Edinburgh
Dr Claudia Martin Edinburgh
Dr Sonja Hunt Franklin, Pennsylvania, US
