Abstract:

There is a correlation between poor housing and ill health but attempts to prove that poor housing actually causes ill health have often failed and the research is often chracterised by weak, sometimes contradictory empirical findings. The highest risks to health in housing are attached to damp and mouldy conditions. To date studies of home improvements interventions have not always demonstrated parallel improvements in health. Some associations between housing and health do exist, supporting the argument that good quality housing has a role to play in both physical and mental health.