Health Hygiene & Sanitation

Lesson 14 : Housing Standards

Over Crowding

• What is it?


• Overcrowding refers to the situation in which more people are living within a single dwelling than there is space for, so that movement is restricted, privacy, hygiene, rest and sleep difficult.


• Effects of overcrowding on health-


• In general the risks as infectious diseases spread rapidly under conditions of overcrowding.


• The effects on psychosocial health ,irritability, frustration, lack of sleep, anxiety, violence and mental disorders.

Children are said to be more affected.

Grading of overcrowding

• Based on person per room
• Based on floor space area
• Based on sex separation

Based on Persons per room

Acceptable norm is –

1 room – 2 person
2 rooms – 3 person
3 rooms – 5 person
4 rooms – 7 person
5 or more rooms – 10 (addl. 2 for each room)

Based on Floor Space…

Accepted standards are :

• 110 sq. ft. (11 m2) or more -- 2 persons
• 90-100 sq. ft. (9 – 10 m2) -- 1 ½ persons
• 70-90 sq. ft. (7 – 9 m2) -- 1 person
• 50-70 sq. ft. (5 – 7 m2) -- ½ person
• Under 50 sq. ft (< 5 m2) -- nil

(A baby under 12 months is not counted; children between 1 to 10 counted as half a unit)

• Sex Seperation : Overcrowding is considered to exist if 2 persons over 9 years of age, not husband and wife, of opposite sexes are obliged to sleep in the same room.

Indicators of housing

Indicators of house are a guide of quality of house. They include –

1. Physical: These are based on floor space, cubic space, room height, persons per room, rooms per dwelling, environmental quality (e.g. air, light, water, noise, sewage disposal, etc)


2. Economic indicators: These are cost of the building, rental levels, taxes, expenditure on housing, etc.


3. Social indicators: include -


1. Indicators related to prevention of illness :


• Frequency of illness due to inadequate sewage and garbage collection.
• Frequency of illness associated with contaminated water source.
• Frequency of insect borne diseases
• Frequency of illness due to overcrowding
• Frequency of illness due to accidents.
• Frequency of illness due to proximity to animals.
• Access to medical facility.


2. Indicators related to comfort


• Thermal comfort
• Acoustic comfort
• Visual comfort
• Spatial comfort


3. Indicators related to mental health and social well-being:


• Frequency of suicides in the neighborhood
• Neglected and abandoned youth in the neighborhood
• Drug abuse (including alcohol) in the neighborhood