**5. Indicators for evaluating housing quality**

In assessing the quality or suitability of housing, qualitative studies have identified some criteria as relevant indicators for quality evaluation in residential development. Among such is [18] who acknowledged aesthetics, ornamentation, sanitation, drainage, age of building, access to basic housing facilities, burglary, spatial adequacy, noise level within neighborhoods, sewage and waste disposal and air pollution among others, as related quality determinants in housing. However, [19] concluded that qualitative housing involves the provision of infrastructural services, which could bring about sustainable growth and development through improved environmental conditions and improved livelihood. In determining the quality of residential development, [20] stipulates five basic criteria which include compliance with tolerable standard, free from serious disrepair, energy efficient, provided with modern facilities and services, and that it must be healthy, safe and secure.

pollutants, considering the amount of time stayed indoor [25]. However, Ana et al. reported that the influence of such pollution on human health may vary, depending on age, sex, nutritional status, physiological conditions, and individual predisposition to the pollutants in question [26]. A study conducted by Rim-Rukeh in a slum squatter inundated area of Warri,

**Table 2.** Range of values of indoor air quality in the kitchen and living rooms of selected households in the slum squatter

**S/N Parameters/unit Range of air quality in study area Air quality regulatory limit (WHO, 2006)**

Housing Quality and Risk Factors Associated with Respiratory Health Conditions in Nigeria

**Parlor/Living room Kitchen**

) 255–391 271–439 250

(ppm) 0.19–0.30 0.18–0.30 0.04–0.06

2 CO (ppm) 12–33 18–41 10

settlements of Warri, and the WHO regulatory limits.

1 SPM10 (μg/m3

Source: Rim-Rukeh, 2015.

3 NO<sup>2</sup>

suspended particulate matter (SPM10) in all sampled households to be above the WHO air quality regulatory limits (**Table 2**) [27]. His report suggests that air quality index (AQI) in areas with poor housing settings such as slums, could be described as unhealthy for active children, women, adults and people with respiratory disease such as asthma, as it is usually associated with poor air quality. This therefore further suggests that impairing air quality in housing setting has an inverse relationship with the housing quality, and thus a negative

Respiratory problems refer to as the disorders of the airways and lungs that affect human respiration have been reported to be a major cause of mortality and morbidity among Nigerian children (**Table 3**). Acute respiratory infections (ARIs) are group of heterogeneous diseases caused by a diverse group of organisms in which the anatomical site(s) involved consists of the airways from the nostrils, pharynx down to the alveoli [28, 29]. In most developing countries including Nigeria, the burden of respiratory disease is largely unknown; however, on an average, it was reported that every child has about 5 to 6 episodes of ARI in a year accounting for about 30–50% of the total paediatric outpatient visits [30, 31]. Data from national demographic health survey 2013 reported the prevalence of ARIs in Nigeria to be about 2% [32].

In a study conducted by [33] between the year 2000 and 2003, it was reported that pneumonia accounted for 20% of deaths in children under the age of 5 years in Nigeria. However, there is a seasonal variation in acute respiratory infections in Nigerian children with more episodes occurring during the rainy season [34]. Few studies have also investigated the etiology of pneumonia in Nigerian adults. A retrospective study of 3671 adults cases seen at the emergency room at the Federal Medical Centre Ido-Ekiti in South-Western Nigeria showed that 368 adults had respiratory diseases out of which 127 (34.5%) had pneumonia, 108 (29.4%) had complicated and uncomplicated PTB, 90 (24.5%) had acute asthma attack while 38 (10.3%) had acute

), carbon monoxide (CO) and

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Nigeria, reported the measured levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO<sup>2</sup>

impact on the health and wellness of its occupant.

**8. Prevalence of respiratory diseases in Nigeria**

There are however indications from these various studies that a single variable may not be sufficient to assess the qualitative nature of residential development; therefore, housing acceptability and qualitative assessment should also take into account type of constructions, materials used, services, spatial arrangement and facilities within dwellings, function and aesthetics, among others [21].
