Global Health Impacts of Climate Change

This factsheet from the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment outlines the direct and indirect health impacts of climate change, detailing risks associated with extreme weather, infectious diseases, food security, and socio-economic stability.

• Climate change causes direct health impacts through heat-related illness, trauma, and deaths from wildfires, floods, and storms. Heat exposure can lead to heat stroke and worsen heart, lung, and kidney conditions. The World Health Organization (WHO) projects that without adaptation, climate change will cause over 92,000 additional deaths among people over 65 in 2030 and over 255,000 by 2050.
• Indirect health impacts include the spread of infectious diseases and degraded air quality. The WHO estimates that by 2030, climate change will cause 60,000 additional deaths from malaria and 48,000 additional deaths per year from diarrhoeal diseases in children aged 0-15. By 2050, an additional 520 million people globally may be at risk from dengue fever, and over 200 million more people may be at risk from malaria.
• Climate change threatens global food security and nutrition, which is expected to be the most severe global health impact of the 21st century. Global production of staple crops—including wheat, rice, maize, and soybean—is projected to decrease. Furthermore, increased CO2 levels are expected to reduce zinc and iron in staple crops, worsening nutrient deficiencies.
• Climate change drives socio-economic instability, including poverty, migration, and conflict. Between 3 and 16 million people could be forced into extreme poverty, with severe impacts projected for rural regions in Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. A 1°C increase in global warming or more extreme rainfall is expected to increase the frequency of conflict by 14%.
• Specific populations are identified as more vulnerable to climate-related health effects, including those in the arctic, tropical regions, coastal areas, and islands. Other high-risk groups include indigenous populations, women, children, the elderly, low-income populations, and people with existing medical conditions.

APA

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (n.d.). Global Health Impacts of Climate Change. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Module-2-Factsheet-ready-to-upload-FINAL.pdf#new_tab

Chicago

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. Global Health Impacts of Climate Change. n.d. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Module-2-Factsheet-ready-to-upload-FINAL.pdf#new_tab.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |title=Global Health Impacts of Climate Change |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Module-2-Factsheet-ready-to-upload-FINAL.pdf#new_tab |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{canadianassociationofphysiciansfortheenvironmentndglobal, author = {{Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}}, title = {{Global Health Impacts of Climate Change}}, institution = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Module-2-Factsheet-ready-to-upload-FINAL.pdf#new_tab}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }