Insomnia is more common among subjects living in damp buildings

To access Publisher full text version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink in Additional Link BACKGROUND: Insomnia is a condition with a high prevalence and a great impact on quality of life. Little is known about the relation between and sleep disturbances and the home environment. AIM: T...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Occupational and Environmental Medicine
Main Authors: Janson, C, Norbäck, D, Omenaas, E, Gislason, T, Nyström, L, Jõgi, R, Lindberg, E, Gunnbjornsdottir, M, Norrman, E, Wentzel-Larsen, T, Svanes, C, Jensen, E J, Torén, K
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: BMJ Pub. Group 2005
Subjects:
Adult
Cross-Sectional Studies
Europe/epidemiology
Female
Floors and Floorcoverings
Housing
Humans
Humidity
Male
Middle Aged
Prevalence
Risk Factors
Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders
Social Class
Bergen
Norway
Iceland
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/2336/2774
https://doi.org/10.1136/oem.2003.011379
http://oem.bmj.com/cgi/content/abstract/62/2/113
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Summary:To access Publisher full text version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink in Additional Link BACKGROUND: Insomnia is a condition with a high prevalence and a great impact on quality of life. Little is known about the relation between and sleep disturbances and the home environment. AIM: To analyse the association between insomnia and building dampness. METHODS: In a cross-sectional, multicentre, population study, 16 190 subjects (mean age 40 years, 53% women) were studied from Reykjavik in Iceland, Bergen in Norway, Umeå, Uppsala, and Göteborg in Sweden, Aarhus in Denmark, and Tartu in Estonia. Symptoms related to insomnia were assessed by questionnaire. RESULTS: Subjects living in houses with reported signs of building dampness (n = 2873) had a higher prevalence of insomnia (29.4 v 23.6%; crude odds ratio 1.35, 95% CI 1.23 to 1.48). The association between insomnia and different indicators of building dampness was strongest for floor dampness: "bubbles or discoloration on plastic floor covering or discoloration of parquet floor" (crude odds ratio 1.96, 95% CI 1.66 to 2.32). The associations remained significant after adjusting for possible confounders such as sex, age, smoking history, housing, body mass index, and respiratory diseases. There was no significant difference between the centres in the association between insomnia and building dampness. CONCLUSION: Insomnia is more common in subjects living in damp buildings. This indicates that avoiding dampness in building constructions and improving ventilation in homes may possibly have a positive effect on the quality of sleep.

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