In addition, after floods or storms, damp buildings may foster mold growth, which has been linked to allergies and other lung diseases. Prolonged exposure to heat can exacerbate cardiovascular, respiratory and kidney diseases, diabetes, and increase the chance for strokes.
Older adults, pregnant women, and children are particularly vulnerable to excess heat. In the summer of , the Aedes aegypti mosquito, usually found in Texas and the southeastern U.
One study projects that Aedes aegypti could reach as far north as Chicago by Heat waves, natural disasters, and the disruption in lives they cause can also aggravate mental health.
During one recent California wildfire, suicidal and traumatized people flooded emergency rooms. In the last 20 years, food prices have risen about 2. While there are several reasons for higher food prices, climate change is a major factor.
Extreme weather affects livestock and crops, and droughts can have impacts on the stability and price of food. New York apple farmers, for example, are facing warmer winters and extreme weather, which can wipe out harvests. They are trying to save their apples with new irrigation systems and wind machines that blow warm air during cold spells, but eventually these added costs will be reflected in the price of apples.
As temperatures warm and precipitation increases, more pathogens will thrive and affect plant health; in addition, more food will spoil. And because food is a globally traded commodity today, climate events in one region can raise prices and cause shortages across the globe. For example, a drought in Brazil in and caused Arabica coffee prices to double.
He and his colleagues are building quantitative economic models to examine vulnerabilities in the food system under different scenarios; they will use the tool to explore how altering certain policies might reduce the vulnerabilities of the food system to disruptions. Three-quarters of our crops rely on insects for pollination and scientists believe 41 percent of insect species are threatened with extinction.
While habitat loss is the major reason, climate change also plays a large part. If we lose pollinators, that could mean losing some of the crops and varieties they pollinate. Intense storms and heavy precipitation can result in the contamination of water resources. In cities, runoff picks up pollutants from the streets, and can overflow sewage systems, allowing untreated sewage to enter drinking water supplies. In rural areas, runoff transports animal waste, pesticides and chemical fertilizer, and can enter drinking or recreational waters.
In some low-lying coastal areas, sea level rise could enable saltwater to enter groundwater drinking water supplies. And in areas suffering from drought, contaminants become more concentrated as water supplies decrease. In addition, algal blooms thrive in warm temperatures and can contaminate drinking water.
In , residents of Toledo, Ohio had to drink bottled water for three days because their water supply was polluted with cyanobacteria toxins. Reduced snowfall and early snowmelt in the spring will have an impact on skiing, snowmobiling and other winter sports. Less water in lakes and rivers could also affect boating and fishing during summer. Find shadier routes Photo: Aarni Heiskanen.
Hotter temperatures, especially in the South and Southwest, will make summer activities like running, biking, hiking and fishing less comfortable and potentially dangerous to your health. As temperatures rise, it may get too hot for some planes to fly.
Hotter air is less dense, so planes get less lift under their wings and engines produce less power. Airlines may be forced to bump passengers or leave luggage behind to lighten their loads. This concern is one reason why long-distance flights from the Middle East leave at night; the practice could become standard for the U. Superstorm Sandy in flooded LaGuardia Airport for three days.
One runway in Northern Canada had to be repaved because the permafrost on which it was built began melting. Once in the air, you may experience more turbulence. Stronger winds create more shear a difference in wind speed over a short distance in the atmosphere, which results in turbulence. And distant storms can create waves in the atmosphere that cause turbulence hundreds of miles away. For centuries, humans have been burning fossil fuels to power their lives.
This process releases additional greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, trapping heat that would escape into space otherwise. Now, a recent UN-backed report on climate change highlights just how dangerous that process has been.
The planet has already warmed 1 degree Celsius and temperatures could rise even more — significantly changing life as we know it. Climate action is just what the doctor ordered.
And we mean that quite literally. Medical professionals have increasingly been sounding the alarm about the risks and consequences of continually burning fossil fuels. The same dirty fossil fuel emissions that contribute to the greenhouse effect can lead to respiratory diseases — such as asthma — in children and adults. And they can be quite dangerous. Air pollution kills an estimated 7 million people worldwide every year, according to the World Health Organization.
By trapping heat into our planet, carbon emissions also damage the human body and mind in other ways. But did you know that warmer temperatures are linked to a 2 percent increase in mental health issues such as stress, anxiety, and even PTSD? But for many living in coastal communities, sea-level rise could lead to an unwanted and sudden move. As our globe warms, glaciers melt and ocean water expands, leading seas to rise about 7 to 8 inches on average since — about 3 inches of that since The added volume of water creeping up coastlines slowly swallows land and homes and fuels more flooding inland to name just a few impacts.
For example, in the United States, from to , the median annual number of flood days more than doubled on the East Coast between Florida and North Carolina, thanks in part to rising sea levels. If unable, they may perish and become extinct. Climate change can cause habitat degradation or loss for several species e.
Polar bears are dependent on sea ice. Koalas are dependent on eucalyptus tree. Lake Urmia Iran is a bird habitat and used to be a popular tourist destination. The lake is drying up mainly because of climate change.
Climate change causes loss of habitat for polar bear. Polar bears will have trouble finding food as the sea ice thins and melts earlier. With limited food supply, the polar bears rely on their stored fat.
They have to swim longer distances in the water and many young cubs die because of their inability to swim. Each koala eats approximately 1 kg of eucalyptus leaves per day. Climate change reduces the amount of water in the eucalyptus tree. The increased carbon dioxide level causes decrease protein levels in the tree affecting plant nutritional quality.
All these changes create dehydration, malnutrition, and starvation. Koalas are risking their lives by climbing down from their trees in search of water and food.
This leaves them vulnerable to predators and the risk of being hit by cars. Elephants require — liters of water per day for drinking in addition to the amount needed for bathing and playing. Droughts can cause population decline Figure 12 [ 25 ]. Climate change is responsible for dehydration and malnutrition of koala. Climate change causes decline in elephant population. Warmer springs have promoted advanced timing of migration and breeding in most avian species in the last decades Figure 13 [ 26 ].
Rising sea levels threaten the sea turtle eggs as most turtles lay their eggs on beaches. Climate change can affect sex determination in several animals [ 27 , 28 ]. The sex of the sea turtles is determined by the nest temperatures. Cool temperatures produce more males while warm temperatures produce more females. Certain areas could end up producing only female turtles, with the possibility of local species extinction since there will be no mating partners for female turtles Figure Climate change promotes early avian migration.
Climate change leads to female sea turtle overpopulation and domination. Climate change is a major threat to human existence. It has multiple deleterious health consequences leading to increased morbidity and mortality [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 5 , 8 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 ].
The human core temperature averages Extreme deviations from the normal core temperature, i. Climate change is resulting in increased exposures to intense heat in many parts of the world. With increase temperature, there are physiological reactions in humans creating risks for some organs and exposing individuals to increased morbidity and mortality e.
In the USA, the annual heat-related death is approximately 1, The European heat wave during the summer of caused as many as 70, deaths. Climate change through heat wave can cause increased morbidity and mortality. On the upside, increased temperatures by allowing milder winters can lower the incidence and mortality of some winter-related events such as myocardial infarction and stroke. Also, hotter and drier conditions can reduce the incidence of some infectious diseases e.
In the absence of proper desalination of drinking water impacted by increased salinity following sea-level rise especially in low-income countries like Bangladesh , the high exposure to salt through drinking water, food, and bathing can lead to several health problems e.
In many regions, food production systems are negatively impacted by climate change [ 1 ]. With the ocean temperature rise, several fish populations may move to higher latitudes, affecting dietary protein supplies of millions of people.
Climate change can create human undernutrition. Several infectious diseases are involved including malaria, dengue, and Lyme disease Figure 17 [ 3 , 34 ]. Climate change favors spread of infectious diseases.
Climate change by creating unsuitable living conditions e. Poor communities are particularly impacted by the human movement. It is estimated that by , up to several hundred million persons will be moved Figure 18 [ 32 ]. Population movement will expose countries to multiple challenges e.
Climate change causes population movement. Overall, children, elderly, indigenous groups, poor individuals, outdoor workers, remote populations, and subjects with pre-existing conditions are disproportionately affected by climate change Figure 19 [ 1 , 2 , 5 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 35 , 36 , 37 ]. Climate change disproportionately impacts vulnerable populations. Low-income and geographically vulnerable countries e.
However, in higher-income countries e. The mortality of the European heat wave of affected mainly the elderly. Adaptive evolution of phenotypes to climate change has been the subject of several investigations [ 26 , 39 ]. Animals react to climate change in three ways: to move, to adapt, or to die. Moving to a new territory is not always a simple solution and can create new challenges e.
Some animals can adapt to changing conditions. An interesting example of adaptation to climate change is the case of polar bears. With the change in climate, polar bears who usually used seal pubs and other marine mammals as food, have started hunting animals available on land e. However, there is no proof that the change in diet can support the polar bear population in the long run. Another example of adaptation to climate change is with migrating birds.
As spring arrives earlier, insects emerge earlier. Some migrating birds are laying their eggs earlier to match insect availability for their young. Adaptation to deleterious consequences of climate change and prevention of aggravation of climate change are important components of the global response of the society [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 5 , 16 , 18 , 31 , 32 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 40 ]. Adaptation spontaneous or planned is especially important in developing countries.
Policymakers must implement personalized adaptive strategies, especially in the vulnerable populations. The risk control to population health cannot be implemented efficiently at the local level alone. It requires coordinated international policy. Human beings rely on biodiversity and functioning ecosystems for water, food, and health. If other species are unable to adapt to climate change, the consequences for humans could be extremely serious. Adaptive strategies require investment and skills.
Society needs to implement strategies to help wildlife adapt to the impacts of climate change e. Identification of traits contributing to resilience and vulnerability of species will allow the development of efficient conservation action plans.
Prevention long-term strategies is a key approach. To spare species and protect humans, the greenhouse gas emissions should be reduced as soon as possible. If we drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions, our climate may reach a new and potentially acceptable equilibrium.
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