How Climate Change is Impacting Global Health
Maya Ezzeddine
Heatwaves, shifting disease patterns and poorer air quality are already changing public health priorities worldwide.
Climate change is often discussed in terms of melting ice and rising seas, but health officials increasingly describe it as a public health issue first.
Heat and air
Longer and hotter heatwaves put older people and outdoor workers at risk, while wildfire smoke is affecting air quality hundreds of miles from the flames.
Disease on the move
Warmer temperatures are allowing mosquitoes and ticks to spread into regions that rarely saw them before, bringing illnesses that local health systems are not used to treating. Hospitals and city planners are now building climate risks into their long-term plans.