In 2023, the United States experienced more billion-dollar weather and climate disasters than in any other year according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Climate change impacts not only our environment but our health. The World Health Organization recently called climate change “the single biggest health threat facing humanity” and estimates that it will cause more than 250,000 additional deaths per year between 2030 and 2050.

“Climate change and the burning of fossil fuels impact health in so many ways,” says Dr. Gaurab Basu, director of education and policy at the Harvard Chan Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment and an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Public Health. “It increases extreme weather events, impacts infectious diseases, decreases food security, impacts water quality, impacts nearly every organ system in the body through severe heat and air pollution, impacts mental health and cognition, and strains social stability.” 

With climate-related threats increasing, these are some of the ways they can impact your health and how to help protect yourself and your community. 

Vector-borne diseases

Increasing temperatures and unpredictable weather patterns are causing shifts and expansions in the geographic ranges of creatures such as fleas, ticks, and mosquitos that carry and spread illnesses to humans, called vectors. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States is currently at risk of vector-borne diseases including Lyme disease, dengue fever, West Nile virus, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, plague, and tularemia. 

“Predictions are that with dengue and other sorts of vector-borne diseases, you may see an exponential increase over the next 10 years,” says Dr. Nahid Bhadelia, an infectious diseases physician, associate professor at Boston University School of Medicine, and director at the BU Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases. 

In addition to the rising threat of vector-borne diseases, climate change is closely intertwined with antimicrobial resistance and migration patterns, both of which could impact the spread of infectious diseases.

While Bhadelia notes that we need more unified and proactive strategies, one promising innovation is genetically modified (GM) mosquitoes. GM mosquitoes are modified to carry a gene that prevents female mosquito offspring from surviving to adulthood. When they are released, GM mosquitoes mate with regular mosquitoes and pass on the gene, decreasing the number of mosquitoes in the area. This strategy has been used successfully in parts of Brazil, the Cayman Islands, Panama, and India.

Bhadelia says education is also an important part of prevention so people can recognize increasing risk and protect themselves accordingly. She recommends individuals be mindful when they interact with nature. Whether at a national park or in your backyard, use mosquito repellent and cover your skin as much as the temperature allows when you’re in a region with ticks. When you’re back inside, give yourself a thorough check for ticks.

Heatwaves and health

July 2023 was Earth’s hottest month in nearly 175 years. “I hope that the record-high heat in July 2023 was a wake-up call to the public, especially to the policymakers in our country, to make substantial efforts to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change,” says Hao Yu, Harvard Medical School associate professor of population medicine at the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute.

Yu recently co-authored a study examining emergency medical service utilization during the July 2023 heatwave. The study found that nearly 25 percent of counties analyzed from across the country had substantially high heat-related emergency service use. Heat increases the risk of heatstroke and stresses the heart and kidneys, exacerbating chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disorders and kidney disease.  

Yu and his colleagues also found that heat-related emergencies were much more common in areas that are socially vulnerable and economically disempowered. 

“Since these counties are already at a high risk of chronic diseases, our findings indicate that the extreme heat event disproportionately impacts [them],” he says. 

Another way to take action in Boston is by improving tree cover in vulnerable areas, which can help cool the air. The distribution of tree cover in the city often correlates with demographic factors such as race and income, according to Speak For the Trees Boston, a nonprofit dedicated to expanding the city’s tree canopy.

Reducing emissions, enhancing health

“The most effective way to mitigate the health effects of climate change is to stop the use of fossil fuels,” Basu says. “We can build energy, transportation, and building industries that are cost-effective and better for our health without fossil fuels with the appropriate investments.” 

Buildings account for 70 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the city of Boston, which is why they are a primary focus of Boston Climate Action Network (BCAN), a community-based grassroots organization that organizes and educates residents about climate justice policy.  

BCAN has helped advocate for the successful passage of several laws that will require large buildings in Boston to become net zero emissions by 2050, and mandate that any new large buildings must be built at net zero emissions. They’ve also created programs helping residents access renewable energy at a low price.

“To improve our public health system, policymakers at national, state, and local levels must invest in vulnerable communities to improve heat resilience,” adds Tarun Ramesh, a research fellow at Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute and lead author of the study with Yu. “Ensuring adequate access to heat resilient infrastructure is a critical first step.” This includes shelters, air conditioning, and clean water.

To make an impact today, Hessann Farooqi, BCAN’s executive director, recommends checking out local programs that can save residents money while reducing emissions like Mass Save Home Energy Assessment and Boston’s Community Choice Electricity program, which was created after extensive advocacy from BCAN and their allies. He suggests supporting community-based agriculture and joining local councils and advocacy groups. 

“It’s scary and uncertain sometimes to understand how we as individuals can do something about [climate change],” Farooqi says. “But it is our institutions, governments, businesses, [and] universities that really can shift the tide… And the way that we shift institutions has always been through organizing together, building movements.”

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