{"value":{"id":65726,"askingMemberId":3929,"askingMember":null,"house":"Commons","memberHasInterest":false,"dateTabled":"2014-07-03T00:00:00","dateForAnswer":"2014-07-07T00:00:00","uin":"203871","questionText":"To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of living in damp homes on the health of (a) children in general and (b) asthmatic children; and if he will make a statement.","answeringBodyId":17,"answeringBodyName":"Department of Health","isWithdrawn":false,"isNamedDay":false,"groupedQuestions":[],"answerIsHolding":false,"answerIsCorrection":false,"answeringMemberId":3932,"answeringMember":null,"correctingMemberId":null,"correctingMember":null,"dateAnswered":"2014-07-10T00:00:00","answerText":"<p>The effect on health of living in cold and damp housing is well known. Evidence suggests that children living in cold and damp housing environments are disproportionately affected. Children living in cold homes, which are more likely to be damp, are more than twice as likely to suffer from a variety of respiratory problems than children living in warm homes<sup>1</sup>. Significant negative effects of cold housing are evident in terms of infants' weight gain, hospital admission rates, developmental status, and the severity and frequency of asthmatic symptoms.</p><p> </p><p>It is estimated that 1.1 million children have asthma in the United Kingdom<sup>2</sup>. We do not know what proportion of these asthmatic children can attribute to living in a damp home to the severity of their condition.</p><p> </p><p>Public Health England (PHE) has an asthma research programme that includes analyses of environmental samples to identify important components including bioaerosols, chemicals and pollutants with the potential to modify asthma risk.</p><p> </p><p>The Cold Weather Plan for England 2013<sup>3</sup> identifies groups at greater risk of harm from cold weather including people living in houses with mould. Flooded properties are also at risk from damp and mould growth following flooding events. PHE in its Guidance on Recovery from Flooding, essential information for frontline responders<sup>4</sup>, acknowledges that there is medical evidence linking prolonged exposure to high levels of mould with exacerbation of asthma in some individuals.</p><p> </p><p><sup>1</sup>Marmot Review Team (2011) The Health Impacts of Cold Homes and Fuel Poverty</p><p><sup>2</sup>APPG Respiratory Health (2014) Report on inquiry into respiratory deaths:</p><p>www.blf.org.uk/Page/Report-on-inquiry-into-respiratory-deaths</p><p><sup>3</sup>Public Health England (2013) The Cold Weather Plan. Protecting Health and Reducing Harm from Cold Weather:</p><p>www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/252838/Cold_Weather_Plan_2013_final.pdf</p><p><sup>4</sup>Public Health England (2014) Guidance on Recovery from Flooding – essential information for frontline responders:</p><p>www.hpa.org.uk/webc/HPAwebFile/HPAweb_C/1317140798239</p><p> </p>","originalAnswerText":"","comparableAnswerText":"","dateAnswerCorrected":null,"dateHoldingAnswer":null,"attachmentCount":0,"heading":"Housing: Health","attachments":[],"groupedQuestionsDates":[]},"links":[{"rel":"self","href":"/Questions/65726","method":"GET"}]}