Health risks of climate change reach record levels

Heat-related deaths, food insecurity and infectious diseases have reached record levels due to the climate crisis, according to the latest Lancet Countdown report.

People worldwide faced an unprecedented 50 extra days of health-threatening temperatures in 2023, with extreme drought affecting nearly half of the global land area, as climate change drives record-breaking health threats across every country, the report released on Wednesday revealed.

Over the past 10 years, nearly two-thirds of the Earth's land surface experienced more severe rainstorms, heightening the risk of floods, infections, and contaminated water supplies, while creating more favorable conditions for mosquito-transmitted illnesses such as dengue, said the report.

It noted that since the 1990s, climate change has driven a 167 percent surge in heat-related deaths among seniors, while also disrupting sleep patterns, increasing exposure to dangerous dust storms, and expanding the reach of deadly diseases into new territories.

"This year's stocktake of the imminent health threats of climate inaction reveals the most concerning findings yet," said Marina Romanello, executive director of the Lancet Countdown at University College London.

"Once again, last year broke climate change records, with extreme heat waves, deadly weather events and devastating wildfires affecting people around the world.

"No individual or economy on the planet is immune from the health threats of climate change. The relentless expansion of fossil fuels and record-breaking greenhouse gas emissions compounds these dangerous health impacts, and is threatening to reverse the limited progress made so far and put a healthy future further out of reach."

Rising heat waves and droughts have increased global hunger, with 151 million more people struggling to access adequate food compared to historical averages — a crisis that threatens widespread malnutrition, the report warned.

Researchers urge a massive shift in funding, demanding that the huge amounts of money currently being invested in fossil fuels should be redirected into safeguarding public health and well-being.

"Despite this threat, we see financial resources continue to be invested in the very things that undermine our health," added Romanello.

"Repurposing the trillions of dollars being invested in, or subsidizing, the fossil fuel industry every year would provide the opportunity to deliver a fair, equitable transition to clean energy and energy efficiency, and a healthier future, ultimately benefiting the global economy."