Climate change exposes future generations to life-long health harm

(Reuters News, 13 Nov 2019) Children are particularly vulnerable to the health risks of a changing climate, as their bodies and immune systems are still developing, says co-author of global study.

A child born today faces multiple and life-long health harms from climate change - growing up in a warmer world with risks of food shortages, infectious diseases, floods and extreme heat, a major global study has found.

Climate change is already harming people's health by increasing the number of extreme weather events and exacerbating air pollution, according to the study published in The Lancet medical journal. And if nothing is done to mitigate it, its impacts could burden an entire generation with disease and illness throughout their lives.

"Children are particularly vulnerable to the health risks of a changing climate. Their bodies and immune systems are still developing, leaving them more susceptible to disease and environmental pollutants," said Nick Watts, who co-led The Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change study.

He warned that health damage in early childhood is "persistent and pervasive", and carries lifelong consequences.

"Without immediate action from all countries to cut greenhouse gas emissions, gains in wellbeing and life expectancy will be compromised, and climate change will come to define the health of an entire generation," he told a London briefing.

Yet introducing policies to limit emissions and cap global warming would see a different outcome, the research teams said.

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Reuters News, 13 Nov 2019: Climate change exposes future generations to life-long health harm