Social Aspects of the Living Environment in Relation to Environmental Health

Numerous relationships play a role in environment-related health problems. Exposure to a stressor such as, for example, noise, radiation or a harmful substance related to a specific source or location can have a broad range of effects on health. Conversely, a specific health problem is often the result of several stressors that originate from different sources and to which an individual is exposed in different ways. The broader context in terms of an individual’s home, living environment, working environment, mobility, socioeconomic status and social networks is important with respect to all forms of exposure and health problems.

This background study provides an overview of what is known about the role of social aspects in the relationship between living environment and health. The study deals with what we know and how we can incorporate what we know into environmental health policy. This objective was worked out into the following questions:

• How are social aspects defined and measured?
• What has research into the environment and health at neighbourhood level revealed about the role of social factors?
• What methods and instruments have been developed for the integrated study of social and environmental characteristics in relation to health?