Health and thermal comfort: From WHO guidance to housing strategies
Highlights
► WHO guidance on thermal comfort is directed to protecting health in the home environment. ► In particular, the WHO guidance aims to protect the health of the most susceptible and fragile. ► Housing energy efficiency strategies protect health, and attack inequities. ► Housing energy efficiency strategies also have economic benefits for society.
Introduction
While the term ‘thermal comfort’ is used to cover a variety of circumstances, the World Health Organization's guidance on thermal comfort is not just about ensuring a sensation of satisfaction with the ambient temperature, it is inextricably linked to health. It is guidance for the home environment, and aimed at protecting health, particularly the health of those most susceptible and fragile to temperatures outside that range, such as the very young, and older people.
Guidance should not just be theoretical and aspirational. As well as being capable of being met, practical means of measuring and predicting that the guidance is satisfied are needed. Measuring air temperature may seem the obvious approach, but this is not always practical or reliable, so alternative methods have been developed. While not necessarily providing exact measurements of temperature, they give an indication of thermal comfort. But the limitations of these methods need to be recognised.
There is also a need for mechanisms to estimate where meeting the temperature range will be difficult or unlikely, and for identifying potentially susceptible occupiers. These mechanisms can help focus preventative and remedial strategies.
We review the evidence supporting the WHO guidance on thermal comfort, the means for measuring and predicting that it is being met, and some tools used to inform strategies.
Section snippets
Background
Thermal Comfort is influenced by a range of environmental and individual objective, and subjective factors. The environmental factors include the air temperature, the temperature of the surrounding surfaces, the air movement, the relative humidity, and the rate of air exchange (ventilation). Thermal comfort will also depend on the activity and the clothing worn by the individual, and the age, health status, gender, and the adaptation to the local environment and climate of the individual and
From guidance to measurement
As for all the factors influencing thermal comfort, indoor air temperature is subject to considerable variation. As well as differing depending on the time of day, there are vertical and horizontal temperature gradients within a room at any one time. And, within a dwelling, ambient temperatures will vary from room to room depending on their use and orientation. As well as the ambient temperature (and the other the factors mentioned) thermal comfort will be affected by heat sources and colder
Predicting thermal comfort
Assessing thermal comfort can be done by measuring perception or by measuring ambient air temperatures, but other approaches are necessary for designing buildings and for estimating the thermal satisfaction of occupants. One approach is founded on laboratory research protocols originally developed by Fanger (1970) where subjects in controlled conditions gave their verdict on different temperatures. The present standards recommended by the American Society for Heating, Refrigerating,
Using tools to inform strategies
The WHO guidance is directed to protecting health, particularly the health of the more susceptible members of the population. The methods for measuring thermal comfort are useful for surveys and studies, and predicting thermal comfort is important for informing designers of buildings. But what is also needed are practical tools to identify and prevent problems, and to inform and direct strategies.
Some methods are used for identifying potential problems associated with poor energy efficiency and
Strategies to protect health
In 2006, WHO Europe organised a meeting, the aims of which included reviewing housing-related strategies directed at preventing threats to health posed by energy inefficiency and Fuel Poverty (WHO, 2006). The meeting recognised the need for two approaches; one essential, but short-term, and the other long-term.
The short term strategies are those directed to ensuring occupiers can afford to obtain sufficient energy to maintain their homes at healthy and comfortable temperatures. These include
Conclusions and perspectives
The WHO guidance for air temperatures in the home are directed to protecting health, and in particular the health of those more susceptible to heat and/or cold. The guidance was based on evidence and has been supported by subsequent research. What is not clear is why there was a change from 15–25 °C in the WHO referenced documents from the late sixties to 18–24 °C in those published in the eighties, however, this latter range is supported by evidence and has been generally adopted as the thermal
Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful for the very helpful comments and suggestions from the Editor and the Reviewers.
References (42)
- et al.
The correlation between temperature measure and perception of thermal comfort: a field study of thermal comfort in low-income dwellings in England before and after energy efficient refurbishment
Building and Environment
(2009) - et al.
Preventing heat-related morbidity and mortality: new approaches in a changing climate
Maturitas
(2009) - et al.
Heat wave impact on morbidity and mortality in the elderly population: a review of recent studies
Maturitas
(2011) - et al.
The costs of unintentional home injuries
American Journal of Preventative Medicine
(2005) - AREN 3050, 2005. Environmental Systems for Buildings 1: Architectural Engineering Course, University of Colorado....
ASHRAE Handbook – Fundamentals: Chapter 9: Thermal Comfort
(2009)High ambient temperature and mortality: a review of epidemiological studies from 2001 to 2008
Environmental Health
(2009)- et al.
Will drivers for home energy efficiency harm occupant health?
Perspective in Public Health
(2010) - et al.
Housing conditions and self-reported health status: a study in panel block buildings in three cities of Eastern Europe
Journal of Housing and the Built Environment
(2003) - et al.
Retrofitting houses with insulation: a cost–benefit analysis of a randomised community trial
Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
(2009)
Guide A: Environmental Design
English House Condition Survey, 2003
Temperature requirements in old age
Building Services Engineering Research and Technology
Effects of age on body temperature and blood pressure in cold environments
Clinical Science
A brief indicator of household energy security: associations with food security, child health, and child development in US infants and toddlers
Pediatrics
Cited by (261)
The impact of high temperatures on performance in work-related activities
2024, Labour EconomicsPerformance of a novel structural insulated panel in tropical climates: Experimental and numerical studies
2024, Construction and Building MaterialsTemperature shocks as an accelerator for digital transformation of manufacturing firms: Evidence from China
2024, Journal of Cleaner ProductionBayesian meta-learning for personalized thermal comfort modeling
2024, Building and Environment