200 health journals call separation of climate, biodiversity crises ’dangerous mistake’
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Key takeaways:
- Overall planetary health must be considered to avoid catastrophe.
- Biodiversity losses have been linked with increases in noncommunicable, autoimmune and allergic diseases.
- WHO must act, according to the authors.
More than 200 health journals simultaneously published an editorial calling on the United Nations, political leaders and health professionals to recognize how climate change and biodiversity are a single global health emergency.
Noting that the world is responding to these crises separately, Kamran Abbasi, MB ChB, FRCP, editor in chief of The BMJ and the other editorial authors — which included 10 other editors in chief of health journals — called that approach a “dangerous mistake” and said these issues instead should be addressed together to “preserve health and avoid catastrophe.”
“Climate change and nature discussions are separate at the international level,” Anandita Pattnaik, MBBS, MPH, policy officer with the UK Health Alliance on Climate Change, which was responsible for the coordination of the editorial, although she herself was not an editorial author, told Healio.
For example, she said, the United Nations holds separate Conferences of the Parties (COPs) related to climate change and biodiversity. Also, she continued, climate discussions often exclude nature biodiversity and health.
There will be a day dedicated to health discussion at COP28, which will be held in Dubai in December. Pattnaik called this day a first but added that more needs to be done.
“These two distinct COPs need to be united, and the dialogue should focus on solving both crises together,” she said.
Impact on human health
Damage to one system leads to damage in others, the authors wrote in the joint editorial. For example, drought, wildfires, floods and other effects of climate change destroy plant life, create soil erosion, and impact the Earth’s capacity for carbon storage.
These changes impact human beings as well, the authors wrote, as shortages of land, shelter, food and water exacerbate poverty and create mass migration and conflict. Impacts will include increases in waterborne diseases as pollution damages water quality.
Polluted water on land also can find its way into the ocean and harm biodiversity there, limiting nutritional quantity and quality for populations that depend on seafood for their dietary protein.
“Climate change, biodiversity loss and air pollution are all due to the same human activities — usage of fossil fuels, unsustainable and animal-intensive agriculture practices, and rapid and large-scale urbanization,” Pattnaik said.
“The adverse health impacts from the destruction of nature are similar to those caused by climate crisis which include lack of access to water and a variety of food, loss of lives and livelihoods, the spread of infectious diseases, increases in noncommunicable diseases and mental health problems, and reduced capacity to develop new medicines derived from nature,” she continued.
Thousands of species have come into closer contact with each other as land uses have changed as well, the editorial authors wrote, increasing exchanges of pathogens and leading to new diseases and pandemics.
With greater urbanization, the authors continued, many people have lost contact with the natural environment. This loss in biodiversity has been linked with increases in noncommunicable, autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, as well as to metabolic, allergic and neuropsychiatric disorders.
“Allergic diseases are on the rise due to complex interactions between climate change, which is causing changes in weather patterns and biodiversity loss; urbanization, which is further destroying nature; and nature loss, which reduces the resilience of the environment,” Pattnaik said.
The loss of native wildlife species makes it easier for invasive new species that can act as allergens to be introduced into the environment, she said. At the same time, the destruction of environments that are rich in natural biodiversity leads to decreased immunity among human beings.
“The problem is amplified by the poor air quality,” Pattnaik said. “Hence, allergic diseases are on the rise due to the climate and nature crises.”
In addition to potential medicinal materials, Abbasi and colleagues wrote, green spaces filter air pollution, reduce air and ground temperatures, and provide opportunities for physical activity. Human beings experience less stress, loneliness and depression and more social interaction when connecting with nature too, the authors added.
These changes will have greater impacts on underserved populations, with the most vulnerable communities bearing the greatest burdens. In fact, these inequalities may be fueling these environmental crises, so addressing them will lead to co-benefits, the authors wrote.
The UK Health Alliance on Climate Change has explored additional connections and offered policy recommendations in its Biodiversity, Climate Change and Health report.
Call to action
Previous COPs have committed to solving these issues, such as a 2022 agreement targeting 30% conservation and management of the world’s land by 2030.
Yet these commitments have not been met, Abbasi and colleagues wrote.
“This has allowed ecosystems to be pushed further to the brink, greatly increasing the risk of arriving at ‘tipping points’ — abrupt breakdowns in the functioning of nature,” they added. “If these events were to occur, the impacts on health would be globally catastrophic.”
The authors called on WHO to declare this climate and nature crisis a global health emergency.
Preconditions for such declarations include a serious, sudden, unusual or unexpected emergency; implications for public health beyond the borders of the affected state; and the need for immediate international action. This crisis, according to the authors, meets these criteria.
WHO should make this declaration before or at the 77th World Health Assembly next May, the authors wrote. Also, they continued, COPs need harmonization in addition to better integration between national climate plans and biodiversity equivalents.
“Health professionals must be powerful advocates for both restoring biodiversity and tackling climate change for the good of health,” the authors concluded. “Political leaders must recognize both the severe threats to health from the planetary crisis and the benefits that can flow to health from tackling the crisis. But, first, we must recognize this crisis for what it is: a global health emergency.”
“Health professionals are hugely trusted voices in society and need to demonstrate leadership by spreading awareness amongst the public about the health impacts of the dual crises,” Pattnaik said.
Patient discussions about improving physical and mental health should start a dialogue around climate change impacts such as heat waves and flooding as well as about access to green and blue spaces, she continued.
“Health professionals must also unite to influence governments for inclusive action on climate and nature crises,” Pattnaik said.
Perspective
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I agree with this call to action. We need to focus on science-based and community-based solutions and develop a scientific approach to test these solutions both on acute and chronic health outcomes. Health professionals who want to become advocates should become science-based and evidence-based advocates of teaching our policymakers. It is about teaching the facts and being curious about how the people across the table framed their understanding of and experiences with climate change.
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