From increased extreme weather events to rising sea levels, extended wildfire seasons, and prolonged droughts that put pressure on food crops, our climate is changing right before our eyes.
The Costs of Climate Change
About 295 billion work hours are lost because of heatwaves around the world in 2020.About 345,000 deaths of people age 65 or older due to heatwaves in 2019-an 80% increase since 2000. About 670 million people living less than 5 meters above sea level face increased risks of flooding, severe storms, infectious diseases, and other hazards due to rising waters. About 180 billion dollars cost of damage from the 242 climate-related extreme weather events recorded around the world in 2020. Four million estimated global deaths were attributable to air pollution in 2019. Two billion people suffering from food insecurity globally.
Climate Change and Health
Climate change is an environmental issue. It is also a serious threat to our public health. Climate change affects the social and environmental determinants of health – clean air, safe drinking water, sufficient food and secure shelter. Between 2030 and 2050, climate change is expected to cause approximately 250 000 additional deaths per year, from malnutrition, malaria, diarrhoea and heat stress.
Rising temperatures caused by climate change lead to longer allergy seasons and worsen air quality. Long allergy seasons can cause more allergies and asthma attacks. Bird flu, cholera, Ebola, plague and tuberculosis are just a few of the diseases likely to spread and get worse as a result of climate change.
The direct damage costs to health (i.e.excluding costs in health-determining sectors such as agriculture and water and sanitation), is estimated to be between USD 2-4 billion/year by 2030.
Areas with weak health infrastructure – mostly in developing countries – will be the least able to cope without assistance to prepare and respond.
Reducing emissions of greenhouse gases through better transport, food and energy-use choices can result in improved health, particularly through reduced air pollution.
The Biggest Health Threat Facing Humanity
Climate change is the single biggest health threat facing humanity, and health professionals worldwide are already responding to the health harms caused by this unfolding crisis.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has concluded that to avert catastrophic health impacts and prevent millions of climate change-related deaths, the world must limit temperature rise to 1.5°C. Past emissions have already made a certain level of global temperature rise and other changes to the climate inevitable. Global heating of even 1.5°C is not considered safe, however; every additional tenth of a degree of warming will take a serious toll on people’s lives and health.
The climate crisis threatens to undo the last fifty years of progress in development, global health, and poverty reduction, and to further widen existing health inequalities between and within populations.
It severely jeopardizes the realization of universal health coverage in various ways – including by compounding the existing burden of disease and by exacerbating existing barriers to accessing health services, often at the times when they are most needed. Over 930 million people - around 12% of the world’s population - spend at least 10% of their household budget to pay for health care. With the poorest people largely uninsured, health shocks and stresses already currently push around 100 million people into poverty every year, with the impacts of climate change worsening this trend.
Who is Most at Risk to Climate Change?
Children are vulnerable for several reasons. For example, children are more susceptible to heat stress and dehydration and are more sensitive to exposure to air pollution and smoke from bushfires. Their immune systems are not fully developed, putting them at increased risk of infections. They often need to rely on adults to keep them safe during emergencies and help them to recover afterwards.
Pregnant women are at increased risk of heat stress during heatwaves due to the physiological demands of pregnancy. They and their unborn babies are particularly sensitive to exposure to air pollution and smoke from bushfires.
Older people and people with pre-existing medical conditions are more prone to dehydration, heat stress, infections and exacerbation of heart and lung disease.
People living in rural and remote areas and people on low incomes and other vulnerable populations are also at increased risk, in part due to inequalities in underlying health outcomes and limited accessibility of healthcare and other services. People living in rural or remote communities or along the coast are also at risk from extreme events such as bushfires, droughts, storms and sea level rises.
Tips to Stop Climate Change
Recycling saves energy. Learn how to recycle properly. Every time a new product is made from raw materials, large amounts of energy are consumed. Recycling remains an effective and important way to reduce your carbon footprint. Reducing waste, recycling and composting are effective ways to decrease the generation of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane.
They achieve these benefits in two ways: by helping save energy in the processing of materials for industrial and consumer use, and by reducing the flow of materials -- especially food and other organic wastes -- into landfills where anaerobic decomposition produces methane.
Support women and educate girls. Empowered women empower women, and when they have a voice in things like family size and livelihood, women can play a key role in addressing climate change. Support mentoring programs and participate in microeconomics initiatives that help women start small, sustainable businesses.
Use renewable energy sources. Extracting fossil fuels is wrecking our planet, which is why we need to shift to renewable energy sources. There are plenty of ways you can reduce energy consumption, including signing up for solar panels, finding a green energy provider, and replacing all of your lightbulbs with LEDs.
Green your commute. Gas-powered vehicles guzzle up fossil fuels, clog highways, and spew out toxic greenhouse gases. That adds up to a TON of pollution (and road rage). So whenever possible, grab your bike, hop on a bus or train, or lace up your walking shoes.
Eat less meat. Meat accounts for nearly 60% of all greenhouse gases from food production. Production of meat worldwide causes twice the pollution of production of plant-based foods. The raising and culling of animals for food is far worse for the climate than growing and processing fruits and vegetables for people to eat.
Eating factory-farmed animals from thousands of miles away is just plain bad — for our health, the planet, and our wallets. So, try incorporating more local, plant-based meals into your diet.
Keep calm and plant trees. We can use trees to fight climate change. Carbon dioxide is the main gas that causes global warming. Through photosynthesis, trees and other plants transform carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into carbohydrates, which they use to make stems, leaves and roots. Trees help clean the air, stabilize the soil, protect biopersity, offset carbon, and so much more.
There are about 3 trillion trees on Earth, which is only half as many as 12,000 years ago, at the start of human civilization. People cut down an estimated 15 billion trees each year. A lot of those trees are in tropical forests, but deforestation is happening all over the planet.
Our wasteful ways are trashing our planet and costing us a lot of money, too. So, the next time you find a hole in your sock, consider repairing before replacing.
Use less plastic. But you can recycle it, right? Wrong. Most plastic gets baled and shipped to countries with lax environmental protection laws. Until we have a better recycling system in place, it’s best to avoid plastic entirely.
Vote like your planet depends on it. Vote for climate-conscious representatives in every election and urge them to commit to setting science-based targets to reduce emissions, implement clear-eyed plans for addressing climate change, and shift to a clean-energy economy.
Compost your food. We waste a LOT of food for a world plagued by food insecurity. Thankfully, anyone can compost their waste at home. It’s simple, effective, and packs a powerful nutritional punch for plants.
We hope for more sustainably. Within the last decade, we’ve seen an upsurge in high-quality, affordable sustainable goods. These companies are passionate about planting trees and sourcing sustainable materials. Small companies can have a big impact on the environment and you can support them.
Encourage elected officials to support green recovery. To restart our economy and recover jobs will require bold action — and what better action than to rebuild our infrastructure with green technology.
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