Increased disease




	Home > Learning Center > Increased disease Increased disease Increased disease is one of the very real consequences of climate change. There is a complexity of factors that influence human health. Some of these are: • Direct temperature effects • Extreme weather events • Climate sensitive diseases The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2007) recently concluded:
Climate Change
Solar Power
Wind Energy
Greenhouse Effect
Energy Conservation
Global Warming
	“Human beings are exposed to climate change through changing weather patterns (for example, more intense and frequent extreme events) and indirectly through changes in water, air, food quality and quantity, ecosystems, agriculture, and economy. At this early stage the effects are small but are projected to progressively increase in all countries and regions.” Weather patterns altered by climate change are predicted to affect the intensity, season, altitude and latitude of tropical infectious diseases such as malaria and dengue fever. Local climate makes a big difference when considering the increased disease that climate change might spur. Extreme temperatures can lead directly to loss of life. Climate-related upheavals in ecological systems indirectly impact the frequency of serious infectious diseases. What’s more, warm temperatures increase air and water pollution, which in turn harms human health.