Global Warming

(Task 1) Global Warming and its effects on infectious disease

Global warming is a debatable subject especially where the question of what causes it is up for debate. This could be down to the pollution we as humans emit, or it could be just earths natural cycle taking its course.

Either way Global Warming is a real issue, and it is happening as we speak, causing devastation of all levels across the world.

One of the issues that bothered me is the spread of infectious diseases.

Warmer temperatures and changing weather conditions like rainfall, have contributed to increased populations of disease carrying insects.

These insects are creating homes in regions that in the past would have been inhabitable to them.

The University of Plymouth conducted a study and concluded that the biggest threat to British enviromental health linked to global warming, could be vector borne diseases, carried by insects such as the sandfly. 

Alyshah Hasham. (2011). Climate change spreads infectious diseases worldwide. Available: http://www.internationalnewsservices.com/articles/1-latest-news/17833-climate-change-spreads-infectious-diseases-worldwide. Last accessed 04/10/11.

Leishmaniasis is a parasitic disease spread by the bite of the sandfly.

“Cutaneous leishmaniasis affects the skin and mucus membranes. Skin sores usually start at the site of the sandfly bite. They can last for months or years before healing on their own. In a few people, sores may develop on mucus membranes”.

Symptoms include:
 

• Skin sores, which may become a skin ulcer that heals very slowly
• Ulcers and erosion in the mouth, tongue, gums, lips, nose, and inner nose
• Stuffy nose, runny nose, and nosebleeds
• Breathing difficulty
• Difficulty Swallowing

Kala-azar. (August 28, 2009). Leishmaniasis. Available: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0002362/. Last accessed 5th October 2011.

This is just one of threats in Great Britain. In 2008 the world conservation study documented 12 animal borne diseases that could be spread due to climate change.

“The Deadly Dozen “a nickname given to the 12 diseases includes

• Bird Flu
• TB
• Ebola
• Babesiosis
• Cholera
• Lyme disease
• The Plague
• Rift Valley fever
• Sleeping sickness
• Yellow fever
• And red tides (algal blooms)