Abstract
Fossil fuels dominate domestic heating in temperate climates. In the EU, domestic space heating accounts for around 20% of final energy demand. Reducing domestic demand temperatures would reduce energy demand. However, cold exposure has been shown to be associated with adverse health conditions. Using an observational dataset of 77,762 UK Biobank participants, we examine the standard deviation of experienced temperature (named here thermal variety) measured by a wrist worn activity and temperature monitor. After controlling for covariates such as age, activity level and obesity, we show that thermal variety is 0.15°C 95% CI [0.07-0.23] higher for participants whose health satisfaction was 'extremely happy' compared to 'extremely unhappy'. Higher thermal variety is also associated with a lower risk of having morbidities related to excess winter deaths. We argue that significant CO2 savings would be made by increasing thermal variety and reducing domestic demand temperatures in the healthiest homes. However, great care is needed to avoid secondary health impacts due to mould and damp. Vulnerable households should receive increased attention.
Highlights
In the temperate climates of the Northern Hemisphere, domestic energy demand is dominated by space heating
The average external temperature for the week in which the thermal variety was recorded was included, the relationship between them is shown in Fig 1, which shows that thermal variety is greater at the coldest times of the year
The clearest statistically significant results from model 1 show that thermal variety decreases with increasing age, increasing unhappiness with health satisfaction and increasing body mass index
Summary
In the temperate climates of the Northern Hemisphere, domestic energy demand is dominated by space heating. In the USA there are four times as many heating degree days as cooling degree days [1]. In the EU, domestic space heating accounts for 78% of domestic energy use, at least 60% of which comes directly from fossil fuel sources [2]. Given the necessity of clear action on carbon emissions, reduction in domestic heating demand is vital. There is broad epidemiological consensus that observed seasonal variations in mortality in temperate countries is attributable to cold external temperatures and cold exposure. A recent meta-review of existing systematic reviews concluded that cold exposure and cold spells increase the risk of cardiovascular and respiratory illness and mortality [4].
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