Climate Change and Human Health: Health Impacts of Warming of 1.5 °C and 2 °C

Global environmental degradation and climate change threaten the foundation of human health and well-being. In a confluence of crises, the accelerating pace of climate change and other environmental disruptions pose an additional, preventable danger to a global population that is both aging and carrying a growing burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). Climate change and environmental disruption function as “threat multipliers,” especially for those with NCDs, worsening the potential health impacts on those with suboptimal health. At the same time, these environmental factors threaten the basic pillars of health and prevention, increasing the risk of developing chronic disease. In the face of these threats, the core competencies of lifestyle medicine (LM) present crucial opportunities to mitigate climate change and human health impacts while also allowing individuals and communities to build resilience. LM health professionals are uniquely positioned to coach patients toward climate-healthy behavior changes that heal both people and the planet.

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Catastrophic Health Impacts of Spiraling Climate Change: How Certain Can We Be About Their Magnitudes?

Frontiers in Public Health ◽

10.3389/fpubh.2020.584721 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Author(s):

Zaid Chalabi ◽

Anna M. Foss

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Human Health ◽

Climate Model ◽

Environmental Exposures ◽

Building Blocks ◽

Health Impacts ◽

Model Parameters ◽

Policy Makers ◽

Total Uncertainty ◽

Human Health Impacts

Recently, there has been a strong interest in the climate emergency and the human health impacts of climate change. Although estimates have been quoted, the modeling methods used have either been simplistic or opaque, making it difficult for policy makers to have confidence in these estimates. Providing central estimates of health impacts, without any quantification of their uncertainty, is deficient because such an approach does not acknowledge the inherent uncertainty in extreme environmental exposures associated with spiraling climate change and related health impacts. Furthermore, presenting only the uncertainty bounds around central estimates, without information on how the uncertainty in each of the model parameters and assumptions contribute to the total uncertainty, is insufficient because this approach hides those parameters and assumptions which contribute most to the total uncertainty. We propose a framework for calculating the catastrophic human health impacts of spiraling climate change and the associated uncertainties. Our framework comprises three building blocks: (A) a climate model to simulate the environmental exposure extremes of spiraling climate change; (B) a health impact model which estimates the health burdens of the extremes of environmental exposures; and (C) an analytical mathematical method which characterizes the uncertainty in (A) and (B), propagates the uncertainty in-between and through these models, and attributes the proportion of uncertainty in the health outcomes to model assumptions and parameter values. Once applied, our framework can be of significant value to policy makers because it handles uncertainty transparently while taking into account the complex interactions between climate and human health.

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Documenting the Human Health Impacts of Climate Change in Tropical and Subtropical Regions

American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene ◽

10.4269/ajtmh.16-0400 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 95 (2) ◽

pp. 260-262

Author(s):

Jennifer M. Kreslake ◽

Mona Sarfaty ◽

Edward W. Maibach

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Human Health ◽

Health Impacts ◽

Human Health Impacts ◽

Impacts Of Climate Change

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Human Health Impacts of Climate Change in Portugal: Study Approach and Key Findings

Epidemiology ◽

10.1097/00001648-200611001-01128 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 17 (Suppl) ◽

pp. S422

Author(s):

E Casimiro ◽

J Calheiros ◽

S Dessai ◽

F Duarte Santos

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Human Health ◽

Health Impacts ◽

Study Approach ◽

Human Health Impacts ◽

Impacts Of Climate Change

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Examining uncertainties in the linkage between global climate change and potential human health impacts in the western USA -- Hexachlorobenzene (HCB) as a case study

10.2172/231511 ◽

1994 ◽

Author(s):

T.E. McKone ◽

J.I. Daniels ◽

M. Goldman

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Human Health ◽

Global Climate Change ◽

Global Climate ◽

Health Impacts ◽

Western Usa ◽

Human Health Impacts ◽

Potential Human Health

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Climate change and human health: impacts, vulnerability, and mitigation

The Lancet ◽

10.1016/s0140-6736(06)68933-2 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 367 (9528) ◽

pp. 2101-2109 ◽

Cited By ~ 248

Author(s):

A Haines ◽

RS Kovats ◽

D Campbell-Lendrum ◽

C Corvalan

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Human Health ◽

Health Impacts ◽

Human Health Impacts

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Making the climate crisis personal through a focus on human health

Climatic Change ◽

10.1007/s10584-021-03107-y ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 166 (3-4) ◽

Author(s):

Vijay S. Limaye

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Human Health ◽

Climate Science ◽

Cost Effective ◽

Climate Impacts ◽

Health Impacts ◽

Specific Information ◽

Local Health ◽

Climate Resilience ◽

Climate Crisis

AbstractClimate change–driven health impacts are serious, widespread, and costly. Importantly, such damages are largely absent from policy debates around the costs of delay and inaction on this crisis. While climate change is a global problem, its impacts are localized and personal, and there is growing demand for specific information on how climate change affects human health in different places. Existing research indicates that climate-fueled health problems are growing, and that investments in reducing carbon pollution and improving community resilience could help to avoid tens to hundreds of billions of dollars in climate-sensitive health impacts across the USA each year, including those stemming from extreme heat, air pollution, hurricanes, and wildfires. Science that explores the underappreciated local health impacts and health-related costs of climate change can enhance advocacy by demonstrating the need to both address the root causes of climate change and enhance climate resilience in vulnerable communities. The climate crisis has historically been predominantly conceived as a global environmental challenge; examination of climate impacts on public health enables researchers to localize this urgent problem for members of the public and policymakers. In turn, approaches to climate science that focus on health can make dangerous climate impacts and the need for cost-effective solutions more salient and tangible.

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Beyond the News: Health Risks of Climate Change

McGill Journal of Medicine ◽

10.26443/mjm.v12i1.736 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Kristie L Ebi

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Human Health ◽

Health Risks ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Scientific Literacy ◽

Current Knowledge ◽

Health Impacts ◽

Extreme Weather Events ◽

Potential Health ◽

Impacts Of Climate Change

Climate change is affecting the health of millions of people through altering the geographic distribution and incidence of climate-sensitive health outcomes, including through injuries, illnesses, and deaths due to extreme weather events, food-, water-, and vectorborne diseases, air pollution, aeroallergens, and malnutrition (1). The magnitude of impacts is projected to increase as the climate continues to change. The scope and scale of projected impacts mean that climate change will touch the professional and personal lives of many public health and health care professionals. Avoiding, preparing for, and effectively responding to the health risks of climate change will require broad engagement of scientists, decision-makers, and the public. Achieving this engagement means that increased scientific literacy is needed of the causes and implications of climate change for human health. There are growing numbers of assessments of the potential health impacts of climate change (1-4) and summaries for various audiences (5). Instead of summarizing current knowledge of the causes and consequences for human health of anthropogenic climate change, this paper will highlight a few issues that may help with understanding the human health impacts of climate change.

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Human health impacts of climate change as a catalyst for public engagement

International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management ◽

10.1108/ijccsm-06-2015-0084 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 8 (5) ◽

pp. 578-596 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Cassandra Pillay ◽

Jeroen van den Bergh

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Climate Policy ◽

Human Health ◽

Public Engagement ◽

Public Support ◽

Mitigation Strategies ◽

Health Impacts ◽

Climate Mitigation ◽

Economic Costs ◽

Content Type

Purpose This paper aims to clarify the relationship between climate change, its negative impacts on human health and its role in catalysing public engagement for climate policies. It aims to increase public support for climate-mitigation strategies by showing the medical case for negative climate-induced health impacts, the economic burden it entails and the public response to climate change that may be expected when health frames are used. Design/methodology/approach The paper reviews medical, economic and behavioural studies focusing on climate-induced health impacts, its economic costs and its potential for catalysing public engagement for climate policy. Findings The paper provides empirical insights about the various direct and indirect effects of climate change on human health which includes both physical impacts (infectious and non-infectious diseases) and non-physical impacts (mental disorders and reduced labour productivity). Extreme events such as storms, floods and droughts further seriously affect the health of many people, as they restrict food production and water supply. Economic damage costs of climate-induced health impacts are underestimated. Together, natural science, medical and economic studies warrant giving more attention to health in public debates on climate change. The more so as evidence of behavioural studies suggests that the use of health frames reinforces public concern for climate issues. Originality/value This paper argues that climate-induced health impacts and their economic costs should be given more serious attention in discussions about climate-mitigation strategies. They can augment public support for climate policy.

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