II. Background
- Global warming has multiple contributing factors
- Fossil fuel combustion
- Methane release (agriculture, fossil fuel production)
- Other greenhouse gas emissions (e.g. fluorochemicals)
- Deforestation
- Global warming is accelerating
- From 2015 to 2025, global Temperatures have been the hottest on record
- Warming rate doubled between 1975 to 2025 (compared with the 50 years prior)
- Global warming creates significant adverse environmental conditions that impact human health
- Extreme Heat Exposure and Heat Waves
- Poor air quality
- Extreme Events (droughts, floods, hurricanes)
- Wildfires
- Vectorborne Disease
- Impacts on food and water supply
III. Adverse Effects: Extreme Heat Exposure and Heat Waves
- See Heat Related Illness
- See Heat Illness Prevention
- Higher risk in urban areas, and for outdoor workers, athletes and low-income households, elderly, homeless
- Chronic disease (esp. cardiopulmonary disease)
- No access to air conditioning
- Occupational heat exposure
- Urban heat islands in metropolitan areas (compared with cooler rural areas)
- Extreme heat is responsible increased mortality
- U.S.: 2300 deaths per year in 2023 (was 1100/year in 1999)
- Global: 546,000 deaths/year
IV. Adverse Effects: Air Quality
- See Outdoor Air Pollutants
- See Wildfire below
- Increased Air Pollution, increased ground-level ozone concentrations and prolonged pollen seasons with climate change
- Increased Asthma Exacerbations and COPD exacerbations
- Ischemic Heart Disease is also exacerbated by poor air quality
V. Adverse Effects: Extreme Events - Precipitation Extremes
- Droughts
- Increased risk of wildfires (see below)
- Floods
- Hurricanes
- Resources
- Extreme Precipitation Events (CDC)
VI. Adverse Effects: Wildfires
- See Burn Injury
- See Smoke Inhalation Injury
- See Outdoor Air Pollutants
- Wildfire risk is directly related to droughts
- Smoke from wildfires contains particulate matter as well as Carbon Monoxide, nitrogen oxides and various other volatile agents
- Beyond the danger from the fire itself, air quality is a major concern (see above)
VII. Adverse Effects: Vectorborne Disease
- See Vector Borne Disease
- Warmer Temperatures have allowed Insect vectors have expanded their range into North America
- Longer durations of warm weather, have allowed Insect populations to increase and be active for longer periods
- Examples include West Nile Virus, Zika Virus, DengueVirus, ChikungunyaVirus, Lyme Disease
VIII. Adverse Effects: Water-Related Illness
- See Waterborne Illness
- Contaminated water supply (e.g. Cholera) is common during natural disasters (e.g. flooding, hurricanes)
- Ocean Bacteria (e.g. Vibrio) increase with ocean Temperature warming
IX. Adverse Effects: Food Safety and Nutrition
- Food supply is expected to decrease worldwide due to climate change (decreased crop yields, fish and livestock populations)
- Food prices are expected to increase in the face of a growing population
- Expected food insecurity and nutrient poor diets with secondary increased risks for both Malnutrition and Obesity
X. Adverse Effects: Mental Health
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and other Anxiety Disorders often follow natural disasters (e.g. wildfires, hurricanes)
- Mental illness (e.g. Major Depression, Anxiety Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, Schizophrenia) are exacerbated by disasters
- Extreme heat is associated with increased Suicide and Violence
XI. Prevention: Clinic Screening and Counseling
- Risk Identification
- Prolonged Exposures (extreme heat, poor air quality, allergans)
- Review Heat Illness Risk Factors (e.g. elderly, chronic comorbidity, access to cool environments, occupational exposure)
- Review Medications Predisposing to Heat Illness
- Manage related comorbidities (esp. cardiac and pulmonary conditions)
- Review Asthma Action Plan (esp. during wildfire season, high Air Pollution days)
- Review allergy management
- Prevention counseling
- See Heat Illness Prevention
- See Prevention of Vector-borne Infection
- N95 Masks when exposed to outdoor high pollution days
- HEPA Filters
- Cooking with adequately vented stoves (or induction or electric stove tops)
- Review emergency plans for extremely hot days
- Community resources (e.g. air conditioned community centers)
- Home energy assistance programs
XII. Resources
- Global Warming 101 (NRDC)
- Climate Effects on Health (CDC)
- Third National Climate Assessment - Human Health
- Climate Resistance Toolkkit
- Climate Mitigation (for Hospitals and Healthcare Organizations)