Study connects early births, childhood health issues to climate change - WBAY
Study connects early births, childhood health issues to climate change
GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) - New research shows climate change is having a negative impact on children’s health.
According to a team of Australian researchers, an increased number of babies are being born early, and it could be associated with climate change.
Scientists reviewed nearly 200 health studies from around the world which show how childhood health may have worsened because of climate change. The study reports an increase in airborne particles and allergens from climate events like wildfires, droughts and irregular season patterns are having a significant impact on respiratory disease, increasing the number of children with breathing issues, such as asthma.
Global ecologists are concerned that climate change would cause lifelong complications for millions of children around the world.
One researcher from a university in Australia says scientists have identified direct links to climate change, including a 60% increased risk of preterm birth from exposure to extreme temperatures.
Researchers point out that low- and middle-income countries are under-represented in the research, so this might be an underestimation of the impact of climate change on children’s health.
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Related Knowledge Center: Climate science
What began as a theory in the 1890s — that industrial emissions of carbon dioxide could increase global temperatures — had progressed to a scientific fact a century later. Scientists across a range of disciplines are studying the impact of the still-growing concentration of carbon dioxide and other so-called “greenhouse gases” in the atmosphere as they call for industrial and governmental policies to slow, then halt, the warming of the planet.