Top stories on the health effects of climate change and pollution

Healio’s coverage during 2021 demonstrates the influence that climate change and pollution have on health and wellbeing.

The most-read story on climate change was about a collaboration between leading health journals that united to reiterate the action required from world leaders to protect the planet and preserve public health.

Other stories included data on the projected number of deaths attributable to climate change, research on the mental health effects of climate change, and a closer look at the role of primary care physicians in recognizing and diagnosing climate-related conditions.

Read these and more stories about the health effects of climate change and pollution below:

Leading health journals publish joint editorial on ‘climate crisis’

In an unprecedented collaborative move, 220 leading health journals published a joint editorial on climate change, calling on world leaders to take swift action to protect the planet and safeguard public health. Read more.

Models predict climate change responsible for thousands of additional deaths by 2095

By 2095, compared with the year 2000, an additional 21,000 deaths attributable to increases in particulate matter less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter may occur in the United States, a recent model showed. Read more.

Q&A: Climate psychiatry making strides to tackle psychological fallout of climate change

As climate change continues to alter the physical landscape for populations throughout the world, it is also incurring profound effects on people’s psychological wellbeing and mental health. Read more.

HHS launches ‘small but mighty’ office to tackle health effects of climate change

HHS launched the Office of Climate Change and Health Equity to “protect vulnerable communities who disproportionately bear the brunt of pollution and climate-driven disasters ... at the expense of public health.” Read more.

PCPs face mounting responsibility to address health effects of climate change

Human influence has had an unequivocal impact on Earth’s climate, causing significant changes that threaten people’s security and physical and mental health, according to a landmark report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Read more.

Plant-based milks acceptable for patients with CKD, may help mitigate climate change

Investigators from New York University have identified the plant-based milks that compare most favorably to dairy milk for patients with chronic kidney disease, as well as those prone to kidney stones. Read more.

AHA offers tips to prevent cardiac, other hazards during heat waves

There are five ways in which Americans can prevent heart-related and other adverse events from extreme heat, the American Heart Association stated in a press release. Read more.

VIDEO: Physicians will see more health effects of climate change in practice

In this video, Nitin Damle, MD, MS, MACP, past president of the ACP, discusses highlights from his presentation at the virtual ACP Internal Medicine Meeting on the health consequences of climate change. Read more.

Psychiatry committee publishes picture book to help children cope with climate anxiety

The Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry Climate Committee published a children’s book focused on helping caregivers navigate children’s anxiety about the changing climate. Read more.

4 in 10 Americans live in areas with unhealthy pollution levels

More than 40% of Americans live in areas with unhealthy pollution levels, and people of color are three times as likely to live in a county with polluted air, according to the American Lung Association’s 2021 State of the Air report. Read more.