Climate change is happening and the risk of related deaths and illnesses has raised.

Climate change can affect both human health and disease in a number of ways. Stressors affecting the climate, whether of natural or anthropogenic origin (i.e. those caused by human intervention) only increase the danger of existing diseases and, unfortunately, in the future, not only will the severity of diseases intensify but new diseases will emerge. For example, high temperatures and increased precipitation combined with fires and ozone pollution have been already having negative effects on our health for years. If weather events continue to become more intense, and if air and water temperature trends continue to increase as they have done so far, we can expect human exposure to water- and food-borne diseases to increase significantly and in a very worrying way.

Forecasts are not encouraging: due to of shorter winters and earlier and longer pollen seasons the severity and frequency of allergic diseases will increase. The negative effects of climate change could significantly alter the geographical distribution of parasites and insects, such as ticks and mosquitoes, with the risk of exposing an increasing numbers of people to pathogens that cause dangerous diseases such as malaria, lyme or zika. Moreover, it should not be underestimated that the climate change’s effects could also alter and worsen the mental health of individuals already most prone to fatigue and stress.

Nevertheless, it is important to note that not all people are equally at risk. The health impacts and diseases related to climate change depend on several factors, for instance: differences in individual and social characteristics or even the geographical location where people live can make the difference. Elderly people and children but also people who do not enjoy the best economic conditions seem to be the most susceptible to climate-related diseases.

Fortunately, governments around the world are gradually becoming more aware of the importance of these issues regarding the seriousness of the effects of climate change on our health. Several adaptation and mitigation policies and programs in order to help individuals and communities are already effective and increasing financial support to ensure better health and reduce diseases and deaths due to climate change has been promised, but much can still be donate and done.