Study Warns of Cascading Health Risks of Climate Change

Heat stress is one of the greatest threats humans face in a climate-warming climate that not only kills people directly, but can also lead to kidney disease and cardiovascular disease , says the report. Higher temperatures can also reduce people's work capacity, particularly in agriculture, resulting in tens of billions of hours of loss of work capacity each year.

According to the authors, the most disturbing is the cumulative effect of extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change. According to the report, heat waves, floods and storms can affect public health systems that are supposed to help people. A failure to reduce emissions, he warned, could result in disasters that "disrupt the basic infrastructure of public health and overload health services".

these extreme precipitations could overwhelm the country's troubled water and sewer systems, thereby contributing to the shortage of drinking water and exposure increasing gastrointestinal diseases. In some areas of the country, such as Florida and Texas, higher temperatures will benefit a type of mosquito that transmits the viruses that cause dengue, Zika, chikungunya and yellow fever.

Echoing these warnings Wednesday, the United Nations. The Secretary General, António Guterres, urged world leaders to rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions as they had promised in the Paris Climate Agreement it three years ago. According to the World Health Organization, nine out of ten people breathe unsanitary air, said Mr. Guterres . "Respecting the commitments of the Paris Agreement could save more than a million lives a year," he said.

Reducing emissions from sources such as coal-fired power plants and diesel trucks would also save the public health systems tremendous savings. Lancet writers said. "Doing this now would be good for us, for our livelihoods and for the planet," said Dr. Ebi.