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The role of human beings in perpetuating climate change
Does climate change affect human health essay
The role of human beings in perpetuating climate change
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There is widespread agreement in the scientific community that the climate is changing and it has likely received contributions from humans in the form of increased carbon emissions. The Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has stated that there is ninety percent certainty that human activity has been the primary cause of temperature rises seen since 1950; if the climate rises by more than two degrees Celsius, scientists predict dire consequences to be faced by humans and the world (McMichael and Lindgren, 2011, p. 402). Changes in climate, no matter how small, bring with it changes in other seemingly unrelated aspects of life. As current research suggests, climate change will have negative effects on human health and nutrition, increasing disease states while having a negative effect on the world food supply. Both of these effects will have negative implications on the quality of life for people living around the globe. Climate change is a global matter, so policy on climate change should consider the health impacts it brings since climate change will ultimately affect the wellbeing of everyone living on this planet. It is therefore the responsibility of every individual to take measures that will help slow down the rate of global warming that is currently going on.
Effects of climate change will impact human health in varying degrees around the world. One of the most direct impacts on human health will be the rate and incidence of both infectious and noninfectious disease. These disease states will affect humans in different ways. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) predicts that climate change will affect the incidence of vector borne and zoonotic diseases through four primary mechanisms: s...
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...h Impacts in Developed Countries. Environmental Health Perspectives. November 2012;120(11):1520-1526. Accessed November 1, 2013.
McMichael A, Lindgren E. Climate change: present and future risks to health, and necessary responses. Journal Of Internal Medicine. November 2011;270(5):401-413. Accessed October 29, 2013.
Mills J, Gage K, Khan A. Potential Influence of Climate Change on Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases: A Review and Proposed Research Plan. Environmental Health Perspectives. November 2010;118(11):1507-1517. Accessed November 17, 2013.
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Climate changes are having a big impact on developing countries, especially on SIDS. These states are particularly vulnerable to them, because their resources as water and food supplies are based on climate resources. In addiction, most of them do not have efficient adaptive capacities to deal with climate changes.
The causes of climate change are also known to them that though it is not only the human action playing role but it is the main cause of climate change. The effects of climate change does include harm and loss of environment and organisms but it also has impact on the human health. Semenza (2014) displays an assessment report which states that throughout the 21st century, the rapidly occurring climate change will lead to increase in number of humans with ill health in many regions mainly in those of developing countries where citizens face low income. Semenza (2014) also mentions how there are physiological limits to intense heat exposure and the global climate change will turn some parts of the world which are currently highly populated into uninhabitable even if the global temperature rises by 7 degrees Celsius. Johnson (2014) states how El-Niño-related hydroclimate variability will lead to being intensified under global warming mainly in areas as southern Asia which are already stressed by different droughts, floods, and crop yields. Dettinger, Udall, and Georgakakos (2015) mentions how climate change puts risk and threat on water resources in the western United States to an extent that no other part of the country matches it. Dettinger, Udall, and Georgakakos (2015) also states how recent research and studies strictly point a limited number
Weinhold, Bob. “Climate change and Health: a Native American experience.” Environmental Health Perspectives. 27 Mar. 2014
I found your article titled “Climate Change and Infectious Disease” to be insightful and provide depth on the issue of climate change. Climate change might not have seemed to raise concern in the past or have an impact on the profession of nursing, but can we say that is the case today? In your article, you identified not only the issue with climate change, but its impact on human health and how it leads to the spread of infectious disease. My objective of writing this letter to you is to support this article and relate it to how it impacts nursing. Climate change impacts nursing because of its ability to spread infectious disease such as streptococcus pneumonia, influenza and tuberculosis. It causes difficulty in trying to contain the spread to patients and their family members (Parkinson & Evengård, 2009). The occurance of natural disaster leads to inadequate housing and santication, which in turn, affect the development and spread of respiratory and skin infection caused by bacteria, viral and parasitic
The issue of climate change is multi-faceted and effects many domains of human life, impacting social, economic, and environmental factors. It is expected that Canada and other northern regions of the globe will experience the greatest impacts of climate change due to the northern latitude and landmass size of these territories (Cox et al., 2013). These warmer temperatures are predicted to create social and epidemiological concerns as well, welcoming an onslaught of pathogens, both old and new (Cox et al., 2013). Environmentally, climate change and global warming have significant effects on biomass and forest life. Decreased water availability has been shown to have negative effects on forestry in western Canada (Chen & Luo, 2015).
Sabogal, R (2010) Global Environmental Health : Sustainability. Journal of Environmental Health, 73 (3) p26-28.
Position Paper for the World Health Organization The topics designated by the World Health Organization (WHO) are as follows: Mitigating the Public Health Effects of Climate Change; Ensuring Access to Clean and Safe Water; and Improving Coordination of Health Services in Outbreaks and Emergencies. The Dominican Republic (DR) considers these issues to be matters of great importance for the sake of its own people and for those of similar developing nations; therefore The Dominican Republic is eager to begin collaborating with its global peers in confronting these concerns in the forthcoming conference. I. Mitigating the Public Health Effects of Climate Change Climate change in the modern era is a natural phenomenon that has been both hastened
Climate change has become of the world’s major issue today. The earth’s climate is always changing in a very fast and also in different ways. Climate changes affect our lives psychologically, emotional and also physically. Climate change is defined as a long term change in the earth’s climate, especially a change due to the increase in the average atmospheric temperatures. Due to this change in temperature, a lot of changes has occurred in our environment, these changes include rising sea levels, flooding, melting of polar ice caps, hotter days, colder nights and heat waves. These climate changes plays an important role in shaping our natural ecosystem, our human economics and also the most important, it affects the human race. For
Keatinge, W. & Donaldson, G. (2004). The Impact of Global Warming on Health and Mortality. Southern Medical Journal, 97(11), 1093-1099.
Climate change is an inevitable phenomenon that is being experienced globally in various forms, such as temperature rise. Sea level rise, droughts, floods, hurricanes, landslides, etc. According to the fourth assessment report of the IPCC project, even with immediate implementation of mitigation strategies, global climate change will continue for decades. Climate change is inflicting serious consequences on human wellbeing and will continue to inflict damage in the future. It is estimated that global temperature will rise by 1.8 oC - 4.0 oC by the end of the 21st century (Izaurraade, 2009).
Climate change is one of the major issues surfacing on Earth over the past century. The earth’s temperature has increased over the years, leading to detrimental effects on the economic and life sources of people, especially that of agricultural production and livestock. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary (2014), defined climate change as a change in global climate patterns apparent from the mid late 20th century. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC, (2007) predicts that by 2100 the increase in global average surface temperature may be between 1.8° C and 4.0° C. With increases of 1.5° C to 2.5° C, approximately 20 to 30 percent of plant and animal species are expected to be at risk of extinction. Moreover, the IPCC (2007) purported that climate change has severe consequences for food security in developing countries.
When the climate changes resulting heavy rainfall and storms, such activities will may threaten human health by causing spread of diseases such as asthma, malaria, and chronic disease. Health industry will receive challenges due to high number of people getting affected by these types of disease. The way health industry can adapt to climate change is by providing professionals doctor to recognize different kinds of diseases so the patient gets the right treatment, and increasing the knowledge of doctors in impact of climate change on health industry. The spread of diseases will cause health sector to spend more money on offering different types of medicines to cure the patients
(Gillaspy, 2003) Hypothetically speaking, Jim see an apply he wants from his tree. Jim’s two options are to grab a ladder and pick the apple he wants, or to grab an ax and cut the apple tree down. Like many of us, Jim only see his immediate need and decides to go with his second option of cutting the tree down to get access to more than just one apple. However, what Jim neglected to consider is that he just jeopardized the future of his tree to bear fruit for himself or others. Likewise, world health organizations argue that the existing climate change due to man’s contributions of environmental imbalances will affect the ability to maintain god health for future generations. Health care organizations should take climate change seriously. Climate change is a constant growing cause of limited food and resource availability, which contributes to malnutrition, and pollutions which assist in the spread of harmful waste, affecting normal human development. Therefore upcoming nurses like myself and other medical teams, should bring awareness of these and other health hazards that may be affecting climate
The Centers for Disease Control have been involved in studying global warming's effect on human health. Its affect on the climate can adversely affect humans. Plagues have been attributed to global warming. An increase in temperature can result in a longer life cycle for diseases or the agents spreading them.” Global warming will lead to more precipitation, which enables infectious diseases to be more easily contracted and spread.” (2) Effects of global warming on human health might not be immediately detected.
As many already know, drugs that are prescribed to us for medical reasons are planted and grown in the ground. The earth warming can affect the growth of these drugs, which eventually can affect our health. As a future nurse it is my job to make this change known to my future patients so they can be aware of this change. According to the University of California San Francisco, “nurses can learn and then practice and lead others on their personal and institutional practices, implementing the principles of reduce, reuse, recycle, recover and re-educate at home and in the workplace” (Vlahov). The aspect of nursing for global warming is a lot bigger than what the average human would think. Not only to us nurses have to do the best we can with how the environment is but also we have to deal with it and inform the patients on how they can help