Heat waves. By most measures, heat is the deadliest type of weather pattern. In particular, extreme heat waves are known to harm low-income urban residents who may not have access to air-conditioning. A 2013 report linked extreme heat specifically to human-caused climate change, reported National Geographic.
Wildfires. The changing climate's heat waves and droughts will lead to increased wildfire outbreaks, if they have not already, according to the Third National Climate Assessment Report from the U.S. Global Change Research Program, released in 2014. (However, direct links between human-caused climate change and past wildfires, up until at least 2013, have been tenuous, according to the same National Geographic report.)
Drought and water quality. Declining water supplies, and in turn, reduced agricultural yields are major concerns due to climate change, the Climate Assessment Report found. (That said, natural climatic variability, not necessarily human-caused climate change, could be the largest contributing factor to the California drought, a NOAA report released in 2014 announced.)
Vector-borne diseases. Diseases spread through mosquitoes and ticks killing thousands every year. The number of diseases affecting humans, plus the number of cases, is set to rise. "The climate will get warmer which means non-native species will be able to survive better, mosquitoes will develop at a faster rate and warmer temperatures will permit tropical pathogens to be transmitted and at a faster rate," Dr. Jolyon Medlock from the Emergency Response Department at Public Health England told weather.com in an email after a study about future disease outlooks in the U.K.
Wildfires. The changing climate's heat waves and droughts will lead to increased wildfire outbreaks, if they have not already, according to the Third National Climate Assessment Report from the U.S. Global Change Research Program, released in 2014. (However, direct links between human-caused climate change and past wildfires, up until at least 2013, have been tenuous, according to the same National Geographic report.)
Drought and water quality. Declining water supplies, and in turn, reduced agricultural yields are major concerns due to climate change, the Climate Assessment Report found. (That said, natural climatic variability, not necessarily human-caused climate change, could be the largest contributing factor to the California drought, a NOAA report released in 2014 announced.)
Vector-borne diseases. Diseases spread through mosquitoes and ticks killing thousands every year. The number of diseases affecting humans, plus the number of cases, is set to rise. "The climate will get warmer which means non-native species will be able to survive better, mosquitoes will develop at a faster rate and warmer temperatures will permit tropical pathogens to be transmitted and at a faster rate," Dr. Jolyon Medlock from the Emergency Response Department at Public Health England told weather.com in an email after a study about future disease outlooks in the U.K.
Air pollution. Seven out of 10 doctors consider air pollution to be the top climatic health concern currently affecting individuals in the United States, according to a recent survey. Air pollution is known to cause lung cancer and has been linked to COPD, asthma and other respiratory illnesses, as well as heart attacks and heart disease. Hot, humid air exacerbates these conditions by causing the formation of additional ozone smog in the air.
Allergies. Not only will a generalized warming trend cause spring allergy season to start earlier and fall to go later, but also the changing climate itself is causing plants to produce more pollen. "The pollen is [directly] affected by greenhouse gases,"
http://www.weather.com/health/news/earth-day-health-and-climate-change
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