Results

The presence of one or more chronic condition(s) was reported in 71% of respondents; 52% reported that this condition limited their activities and 40% rated their health as either “fair” or “poor”. All 23 explanatory variables were entered simultaneously into the multiple regression models. The results shown in table 1 are only for variables that were significant in the separate models.

Sociodemographic variables known to be associated with poor health were significant for each of the health measures; however, at least one housing variable was also significant in each model. Living in rented accommodation (local authority or private rented) was associated with increased odds of the presence of 1+ chronic condition(s), 1+ limiting condition(s) and “fair” or “poor” self assessed health.

Respondents who reported feeling cold in winter “most of the time” were over three times more likely to suffer from a limiting condition and almost five times as likely to report “fair” or “poor” self assessed health. Type of bedroom heating was also associated with “fair” or “poor” self assessed health although the nature of this relation is not clear from this model. Two measures of dampness, respondents' assessment of dampness and interviewers assessment of dampness, were not significant in the multiple regression models.

The apparently counter-intuitive association between time of year and the presence of one or more chronic conditions may be attributable to the fact that the vast majority of interviews took place during February to May. Those respondents who were interviewed latterly may have postponed their interview because of ill health.

Discussion

This analysis has shown that, over and above socioeconomic factors and house conditions, inadequate home heating is associated with poor health in those aged 55–60. Although the observed association between ill health and inadequate home heating is not necessarily causal, living in a cold house will almost certainly exacerbate existing conditions and may lead to early mortality. Moreover, people living with a limiting condition may require relatively warmer housing because they are likely to be inactive for long periods of time.

Cold and dampness in homes are related4 and increased awareness of the importance of adequate affordable efficient methods of home heating could help reduce the number of people living in homes that are detrimental to their health. Further analysis in this area using objective measures of cold and damp housing would be beneficial.