Buildings which are too damp or too dry can be bad foroccupants’ health. This fact has been well established by many reports including those of the World Health Organisation1 and the Institute of Medicine2. Yet precisely how bad such buildings are, to what kinds of occupants, at
what level of dampness or dryness, is much more difficult
to define, as are the agents of illness, such as the many
types of mould, bacteria, other irritants and toxins that
can result from imbalances of moisture in buildings.
This UK based public report seeks to identify the issues
that prevent progress towards a better outcome for
occupants, highlights the risks of not addressing these
issues in a timely way, and suggests a constructive way
forward.
It is the result of an examination of the academic and
expert research literature in this subject undertaken over
the past year, 2016 – 2017. This research covered several
hundred articles and books, and references almost 200
separate studies. From our research we have drawn the
following conclusions:
1 There is a significant link between moisture levels in
buildings and occupant health. While there is good
evidence of the dangers to health from excessively
damp or dry buildings—and of moderately damp or
dry buildings when measured against particularly
vulnerable people such as the very young or very
old, pregnant women and very sick people—there is
currently less robust evidence of the health risks to the
general population.
2 This is not necessarily because there is no evidence of
health impacts, but because we do not have the right
methodological tools and metrics to gather appropriate
data in order to adequately assess the effects of
building moisture on human health. Consequently,
much of the data that is being gathered is inconsistent,
incomplete or non-comparable.
3 It is highly likely that, through the current changes to
building form, construction, occupation patterns and
use, we will increase the risk and incidence of illness in
the UK. These changes to our buildings may make their
moisture condition much more hazardous over the next
few years.
Health and Moisture in Buildings
