General pathology · Environmental pathology
Health effects of climate change !
- Topic
A warming climate brings more heat waves, floods and droughts, spreads mosquito-borne infections and worsens air quality and food supply.
Updated 2026-11-01
What it is
Climate change acts on health through many routes: direct heat, extreme weather, changes in where vectors live, unsafe water, food insecurity and air pollution. The poorest populations and those living in tropical countries carry most of the burden. In Colombia, El Niño years and rising temperatures have been linked to dengue outbreaks and to mosquitoes reaching higher altitudes.
Step by step
- Greenhouse gases raise the average temperature and the frequency of extreme events.
- Heat waves overwhelm thermoregulation, especially in older adults, children, outdoor workers and people with chronic disease.
- Warmer, wetter places let Aedes and Anopheles mosquitoes survive in new areas and transmit faster.
- Floods contaminate water: diarrhoeal disease, cholera and leptospirosis.
- Droughts and crop losses cause food insecurity and child malnutrition.
- Wildfire smoke, ozone and longer pollen seasons worsen asthma and COPD.
Climate pathways and their health effects
| Pathway | Health effect |
|---|---|
| Extreme heat | Heat stroke, cardiovascular deaths, kidney injury in outdoor workers |
| Vector spread | Dengue, Zika, chikungunya and malaria in new areas |
| Floods and storms | Injuries, displacement, diarrhoea, leptospirosis, cholera |
| Drought and crop failure | Malnutrition and stunting |
| Worse air quality | Asthma and COPD attacks, cardiovascular disease |
| Displacement and loss | Mental health problems |
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
Which groups are most vulnerable to heat waves?
Older adults, young children, outdoor workers and people with heart, lung or kidney disease or on certain medicines.
Why do dengue cases rise with warming?
Warmer temperatures let Aedes aegypti live at higher altitudes and latitudes and shorten the virus's development time in the mosquito.
Which bacterial infection classically follows flooding in tropical regions?
Leptospirosis, spread by water contaminated with the urine of rats and other animals.
Related
- Thermal injury: burns, hyperthermia and hypothermia
- Air pollution and occupational exposures
- Severe acute malnutrition: marasmus and kwashiorkor
Related conditions
- Heat stroke and heat exhaustion
- Dengue
- Malaria
- Zika virus infection
- Chikungunya
- Leptospirosis
- Cholera
- Acute (viral) gastroenteritis
- Asthma
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- Chronic kidney disease
- Marasmus
Elsewhere in DurgiPedia
Microorganisms
Educational content on the mechanisms of disease; not a diagnostic or treatment guide and no substitute for a health professional's advice. No doses are given.
Sources: Climate change (World Health Organization, 2026); Ambient (outdoor) air pollution (World Health Organization, 2026).
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Representative model, for educational purposes only.