Click here for great Global Warming Links 

Brought to you by Yahoo.com

Health Risks of a Warming Climate Evaluated

While the health risks of a warming climate are just part of the equation, they effect all of us.

The US National Assessment of the Potential Consequences of Climate Variability and Change has completed one component of its study, an evaluation of the health risks associated with global warming. Researchers from the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) led the study on the relationship between climate, weather patterns, and human health risks in the US.

"This report is unique because it is the first time a group of leading public health experts has been brought together to begin to assess potential health consequences of global climate change specific to the US," said Michael A. McGeehin of CDC.

The study noted the correlation between rises in temperature and specific illnesses, like heat stroke and exhaustion. Climate change will also likely affect the frequency, intensity, and duration of extreme weather events, which can lead to other health hazards, such as bacterial proliferation and the scarcity of safe drinking water. On the other hand, winter deaths might actually decline, but that comes with the caveat that the relationship between winter weather and illness is not fully understood. It is unclear, for example, how the transmission of influenza will be affected by milder winter temperatures.

The researchers concluded that a variety of public health and other infrastructure controls can offset at least some of the health hazards. Their report calls for policymakers to consider measures like building codes and zoning ordinances to prevent storm damage, advanced weather warning systems, improved disease surveillance and prevention programs, enhanced sanitation systems, health education, public drinking water safeguards, and continued air pollution controls.

The study also suggests that adaptation strategies must vary in different parts of the US. Chicago, Illinois, for example, should plan for heat waves, while coastal communities along the Southeast must be prepared for hurricanes, and so on. Finally, the study called for continued investment in the public health infrastructure.

The assessment was conducted in partnership with the Global Change Research Program of the US Environmental Protection Agency as part of a congressionally mandated study of climate change in the US. 

For details of the health assessment, visit the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health's Web site at www.jhsph.edu/globalchange. 

For the executive summary of the workshop, see http://ehis.niehs.nih.gov/topic/global/patz-full.html. The full report will be available later this year.