Exposure to Diseases to Rise As A Result of Climate Change

Animals that carry the disease are adapting to the changing climate on Earth by changing their habitats, which alters the risk of infectious disease as they do.

Mosquitoes, ticks, and even smaller carriers like algae and bacteria are moving around as they adapt to the quick variations in temperature and habitat availability. 

They might be forced into closer contact with other species or exposed to prolonged stretches of warm weather that encourage growth.

Meanwhile, human exploitation of natural resources and urban encroachment are expanding our influence into formerly wild areas.

New patterns of human disease are being brought on by these changes in the climate taken together.

Climate change is increasing our risk of exposure to disease

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that between 2004 and 2016, the prevalence of diseases carried by infected mosquitoes, ticks, and fleas tripled. 

Between 2030 and 2050, according to the World Health Organization, malaria will be a factor in an additional quarter million premature deaths.

The likelihood of diseases spreading to pandemic levels will likely be impacted by climate change, experts warn.

Colin Carlson, a global change biologist at Georgetown University, told The Associated Press: 

"I think we've drastically underestimated not only how much climate change is already changing disease risks, but just how many kinds of risks are changing." 

"In terms of epidemic and pandemic threats, I think there is a lot more to be concerned about."

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