2011/10/19 by Anna Mavrogianni, Fiona Johnson, Marcella Ucci +4 · 1 citation
Engineering · Environmental Science · Medicine · #Building Energy and Comfort Optimization #Climate Change and Health Impacts #Thermoregulation and physiological responses #Environmental science #Stock (firearms) #Context (archaeology) #Energy expenditure #Meteorology #Geography #Atmospheric sciences
paper · doi:10.1177/1420326x11425966
openalex publication_date 2011/10/19 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/19
It has been argued that the amount of time spent by humans in thermoneutral environments has increased in recent decades. This paper examines evidence of historic changes in winter domestic temperatures in industrialised countries. Future trajectories for indoor thermal comfort are also explored. Whilst methodological differences across studies make it difficult to compare data and accurately estimate the absolute size of historic changes in indoor domestic temperatures, data analysis does suggest an upward trend, particularly in bedrooms. The variations in indoor winter residential temperatures might have been further exacerbated in some countries by a temporary drop in demand temperatures due to the 1970s energy crisis, as well as by recent changes in the building stock. In the United Kingdom, for example, spot measurement data indicate that an increase of up to 1.3°C per decade in mean dwelling winter indoor temperatures may have occurred from 1978 to 1996. The findings of this review paper are also discussed in the context of their significance for human health and well-being. In particular, historic indoor domestic temperature trends are discussed in conjunction with evidence on the links between low ambient temperatures, body energy expenditure and weight gain.