Urban Health: Assessment of Indoor Environment Spillovers on Health in a Distressed Urban Area of Rome

Alessandra Battisti, Livia Calcagni, Alberto Calenzo, Aurora Angelozzi, Miriam Errigo, Maurizio Marceca and Silvia Iorio
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Alessandra Battisti: Department of Planning, Design and Technology of Architecture, Sapienza University of Rome, 00196 Rome, Italy
Livia Calcagni: Department of Planning, Design and Technology of Architecture, Sapienza University of Rome, 00196 Rome, Italy
Alberto Calenzo: Department of Planning, Design and Technology of Architecture, Sapienza University of Rome, 00196 Rome, Italy
Aurora Angelozzi: Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
Miriam Errigo: Department of Social Sciences and Economics, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
Maurizio Marceca: Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
Silvia Iorio: Department of Medico-Surgical Sciences and Biotechnologies, Unit of History of Medicine and Bioethics, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 10, 1-20

Abstract: It is notable that indoor environment quality plays a crucial role in guaranteeing health, especially if we consider that people spend more than 90% of their time indoors, a percentage that increases for people on low income. This role assumes even further significance when dealing with distressed urban areas, vulnerable areas within cities that suffer from multiple deprivations. The community-based interdisciplinary research-action group of the University La Sapienza focused on a complex in the outskirts of Rome. The aim was to assess the correlations between architectural aspects of the indoor environment, socio-economic conditions, such as lifestyles and housing conditions, and eventually health outcomes. The intent of providing a comparative methodology in a context where official data is hard to find, led to the integration of social, health, and housing questionnaires with various environmental software simulations. What emerged is that underprivileged housing conditions, characterized by mold, humidity, unhealthiness, thermohygrometric discomfort, architectural barriers, and overcrowding, are often associated with recurrent pathologies linked to arthritis, respiratory diseases, and domestic accidents.

Keywords: indoor environmental quality (IEQ); indoor health; social determinants; multidisciplinary approach; regeneration strategies; spatial segregation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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