‘Protecting human health from climate change’

It’s summertime, and the living is supposed to be easy. But the warmer weather, accentuated by the reality of global warming has made it easier for blood-sucking mosquitoes to multiply and spread malaria, dengue and other diseases on the human population.

It is in this regard that the World Health Organization (WHO) has chosen to put a premium on human health as the nation joins the rest of the global village in observing World Health Day tomorrow with the theme “Protecting human health from climate change.”

Dr. John Juliard Go, WHO country representative, said in a weekly forum at Annabel’s Restaurant in Quezon City that the urgency of the global challenge becomes more poignant in the Third World countries as the poor are the first and hardest hit, although people all over the world are vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change, particularly the children and the elderly people.

As ambient temperature rises, mosquitoes and other insect vectors of diseases multiply faster as they survive, flourish and breed more vigorously in warmer climates than in cooler habitats. Additionally, experts agree that the ultra-violet radiation coming from global warming can impair the human immune responses rendering the population more susceptible to infection, thus leading to the likelihood of diseases to occur in epidemic proportion.

To date, the WHO said more than three million deaths occur globally each year due to the mayhem being inflicted by the haematophagous or blood-thirsty mosquitoes, which is being compounded by the impact of climate change on the availability of water resources and the greenhouse effects on agricultural productivity.

In her message, Dr. Margaret Chan, WHO director-general, commented that it is both unfair and unacceptable to think that the issues of ozone depletion and greenhouse effects could adversely provoke a dearth in the fundamental determinants of man’s well being, which are food, air and water, aside from compromising human health.

The ominous signs of global warming, however, are now being felt in every nook and cranny of the earth.

Go reported that in Asia, the endemic morbidity and mortality due to diarrhea associated with floods and droughts have been rising due to the changes in the hydrological cycle.

In North America, the potential adverse health impact can be felt from an increase in the number, intensity and duration of heat waves, which are more often characterized by stagnant masses of warm air and consecutive nights with high minimum temperatures.

In Africa, malnutrition is projected to rise after a 50-percent reduction in yields from rain-fed agriculture by the next decade. Even the rich nations in Europe will not be spared by our increase in health risks due to heat waves and increased frequency of wildfires.

In Latin America, a big increase in the number of people who may go hungry is very possible due to the decrease in productivity of some important crops and livestock.

Here in the Philippines, May Ajero, of the institutional Clean Air Initiative for Asian Cities, cited the worry that over-consumption in energy and transport fuel is causing a large release of heat-trapping gases from power plants and cars that could arise in unpredictable and unwelcome changes in climatic conditions, particularly in the urban areas.

Additionally, the mounting upsurge in temperatures could also significantly diminish air quality, an ideal condition towards the onset for an increase in the frequency and severity of several respiratory ailments. The situation becomes all the more a health problem as pollen, another air contaminant, becomes more abundant as temperatures and carbon dioxide levels rise, according to the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Other possible effects of climate change are:

• Change in the configuration of jet streams and ocean currents, prompting an alteration in the distribution of rainfall leading to variations in regional weather. Some regions may become wetter while others may be drier. In addition, weather disturbances can cause more violent environmental conditions such as hurricanes.

• Vegetation and food supplies will be unstable from region to region as the capability of grain crops and trees to adapt from aggressive weather change becomes uncertain. Agricultural regions earlier thought to be productive can lose soil moisture due to the onset of hotter environment thus impairing grain production. As if adding insult to injury, food crops are more likely to be damaged as the temperate climate would court insects, fungis and microorganisms to make the particular grain, fruits and vegetables as their new habitat.

• The rise in sea level, caused by melting of the polar ice-caps and the thermal expansion of the seawater mass, has been going on for years, according to experts. Experts predict a rise of 0.5 meter or less in the next 50 years, which could cause many coastal communities to be submerged in water.

Consequence of ultra-violet radiation from continuous exposures can make people everywhere at risk from dermatological effects as skin cancer or melanoma, sunburn, skin pigmentation, loss of elasticity and accelerated aging of the skin and even cataract formation in the eyes.