Climate change and public health fact sheets


Climate Change and Public Health

What is climate change?

Climate change refers to any significant long term change in current normal climate conditions, such as temperature, precipitation, extreme weather events, snow cover and sea level rise. There is a clear scientific consensus that the world's climate is changing, largely as a result of human activities, and that this will bring about changes in weather conditions and other natural systems. Although the specific impacts will vary depending on the region of Canada in which you live, in general climate change is anticipated to result in generally warmer temperatures, shorter and milder winters, longer and hotter summers, more frequent and/or more intense severe weather events such as hurricanes, thunderstorms, wildfires, floods and droughts.

Canadians are accustomed to accounting for weather and changes in weather in their day-to-day lives. However, climate change would present new health concerns for most Canadians.

Where is climate change happening in Canada?

Climate change will impact all areas of the country. The nature and the extent will vary across Canada and some of the key projected changes by region are:

Arctic

West Coast

Prairies

Quebec and Ontario

Atlantic

What are the health risks associated with climate change?

Weather and climate can have direct impacts on our health and can cause, for example, hypothermia in cold weather; heat stress on hotter days; and injuries or loss of life from severe weather (e.g. floods). They can also indirectly impact health through, for example, water contamination after intense rainfall, cardio-respiratory problems from smog, and increased risks from food-borne and vector-borne diseases during hot weather.

Direct and indirect health impacts could be worsened with climate change. For example, it is anticipated that many larger Canadian cities would experience a significant rise in the number of smog days and longer heat waves. This could increase heat related illnesses and deaths, especially in those most vulnerable to heat, such as the elderly.

Climate change can impact health in the following ways:

Infectious Diseases

Extreme Weather Events

Higher Temperatures

Air Quality

Who will be most affected by climate change?

Climate change impacts on health will disproportionately affect vulnerable populations, including the poor, elderly, and the young and those who are chronically ill. Also included are the socially disadvantaged and people living in vulnerable geographical areas (e.g. North).

How can I protect myself?

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