London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1903
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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rates upon the common lodging.house population of London, inasmuch as the persons comprised
therein are largely of the nomadic class and its numbers are variable, but the figures are amply
sufficient to show that the death.rate among this class is abnormal, and that the abnormality is
especially marked in the case of particular causes of death. The fact has to be borne in mind in
drawing any conclusions from these figures, that sufferers from chronic diseases such as phthisis
and alcoholic subjects naturally gravitate to the common lodging.houses owing to inability to
obtain remunerative employment, and the high death.rates obtaining cannot therefore be regarded
as the result of the environment of the common lodging.house per se; the rates, moreover, are
calculated upon the population actually residing in common lodging.houses, while among the
deaths are included those occurring in public institutions among persons removed thereto
from common lodging.houses. The following table shows the death.rates per 1,000 living from
certain causes at certain ages in common lodging.houses during 1903, compared with the
corresponding death.rates in London during 1901. The London rates for 1903 are not yet
available, but the fact that the "all causes" death.rate for 1903 in London was considerably
below that for 1901 makes it probable that the comparison would be still more unfavourable
to the common lodging.house death.rates if the 1903 figures for London had been used in this
connection—
| Cause of death. | Age 25— | Age 35— | Age 45— | Age 55— | Age 65— | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All causes | C.L.H. | 15.24 | 22.62 | 42.56 | 66.30 | 144.30 |
| 6.74 | 12.76 | 21.79 | 37.82 | 70.42 | ||
| Phthisis | C.L.H. | 6.89 | 12.49 | 20.27 | 16.29 | 11.49 |
| 2.65 | 4.30 | 5.01 | 4.12 | 2.72 | ||
| Alcoholism (including cirrhosis of the liver) | C.L.H. | 1.04 | 1.27 | 1.78 | 3.79 | 5.11 |
| 0.17 | 0.61 | 1.17 | 1.39 | 1.36 | ||
| Urinary diseases | C.L.H. | 1.26 | 1.09 | 3.57 | 4.17 | 14.05 |
| 0.22 | 0.67 | 1.28 | 2.91 | 5.88 | ||
| Violence | C.L.H. | 0.63 | 0.72 | 1.78 | 1.89 | 5.11 |
| 0.64 | 0.92 | 1.43 | 1.77 | 2.36 | ||
| Cancer | C.L.H. | 0.21 | 0.72 | 2.23 | 7.20 | 21.72 |
| 0.14 | 0.57 | 1.95 | 4.36 | 7.24 | ||
| Other tubercular diseases | C.L.H. | 0.21 | 0.18 | 0.22 | 0.76 | 1.28 |
| 0.22 | 0.16 | 0.19 | 0.15 | 0.27 | ||
| Circulatory diseases | C.L.H. | 1.46 | 2.35 | 4.46 | 7.58 | 24.27 |
| 0.68 | 1.34 | 3.82 | 8.93 | 19.04 | ||
| Nervous diseases | C.L.H. | — | — | 1.78 | 2.27 | 5.11 |
| 0.21 | 0.53 | 0.91 | 1.70 | 3.56 | ||
| Bronchitis | C.LH. | 0.21 | 1.09 | 2.01 | 11.36 | 30.66 |
| 0.08 | 0.36 | 1.18 | 4.28 | 11.54 | ||
| Pneumonia | C.L.H. | 1.26 | 1.81 | 2.01 | 6.44 | 12.77 |
| 0.53 | 1.20 | 1.88 | 2.82 | 3.81 | ||
| All other causes | C.L.H. | 2.07 | 0.90 | 2.45 | 4.55 | 12.77 |
| 1.20 | 2.10 | 2.97 | 5.39 | 12.64 | ||
The following table shows for London and the population residing in common lodging.
houses the number of deaths from certain causes per 1,000 deaths from "all causes" at five
age-periods. This table is a much better indication of the excessive mortality obtaining for
certain causes of death among common lodging-house inmates than the preceding table, as the
figures are not shown in relation to population against which, as has been previously shown,
objection can be urged. Where the common lodging-house figure exceeds the corresponding
figure for London the former is shown in Clarendon type.
| Cause of death. | Age 25— | Age 35— | Age 45— | Age 55— | Age 65— | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C.L.H. | London. | C.L.H. | London. | C.L.H. | London. | C.L.H. | London. | C.L.H. | London. | |
| All causes | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| Phthisis | 452 | 393 | 552 | 337 | 477 | 229 | 246 | 109 | 80 | 39 |
| Alcoholism | 68 | 26 | 56 | 48 | 42 | 54 | 57 | 37 | 35 | 19 |
| Urinary diseases | 82 | 32 | 48 | 52 | 84 | 59 | 63 | 77 | 97 | 84 |
| Violence | 41 | 95 | 32 | 72 | 42 | 65 | 29 | 47 | 35 | 33 |
| Cancer | 14 | 20 | 32 | 45 | 52 | 90 | 109 | 115 | 150 | 103 |
| Other tubercular dis- | 14 | 32 | 8 | 13 | 5 | 9 | 11 | 4 | 9 | 4 |
| Circulatory diseases | 96 | 100 | 104 | 105 | 105 | 176 | 114 | 236 | 168 | 270 |
| Nervous diseases | — | 32 | — | 42 | 42 | 42 | 34 | 45 | 35 | 51 |
| Bronchitis | 14 | 11 | 48 | 28 | 47 | 54 | 171 | 113 | 213 | 164 |
| Pneumonia | 82 | 79 | 80 | 94 | 47 | 86 | 97 | 75 | 89 | 54 |
| All other causes | 137 | 180 | 40 | 164 | 57 | 136 | 69 | 142 | 89 | 179 |
| Proportions in C.L.H.'s in Clarendon type are those in excess of the corresponding London proportions. | ||||||||||