The Effects of Climate Change on Health

Climate change is already causing adverse effects on health. Across the globe we already see droughts, extreme weather, and rising sea waters. These have detrimental effects on human health, particularly on more vulnerable populations. Droughts cause dehydration and poor crop yield, creating food scarcity. Fires and extreme weather endanger lives and whole communities may be destroyed. Heat related illnesses are exacerbated from rising temperatures and power outages may threaten lives. Lastly, mental health will suffer. People may become depressed if they believe they cannot make any substantial change. Trauma from extreme weather and other tragedies could cause depression, anxiety or PTSD. Clearly, climate change will affect human health in many ways, and these issues are deeply related. A good book on this topic of mental health and climate is Mary Pipher's The Green Boat.

The Minnesota Department of Health also provides information on the intersection of health and climate issues: http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/climatechange/

This post was written by Maddie Lee, a student worker in the Sustainability Office.