Doctor wearing highly protective suit while injecting a vaccine into the earth.
Credit: Hocus-Focus / Getty

Wednesday marked the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and since well before the COVID-19 outbreak, the World Health Organization has been tracing and analyzing the impact of how climate change is impacting public health.

But as the global community continues to grapple with the coronavirus pandemic, top climate officials say our attention needs to shift to climate-related issues that directly impact our health.

In an interview with “Face the Nation” moderator Margaret Brennan, Dr. Diarmid Campbell-Lendrum, Head of the Climate Change and Health Program at the World Health Organization, says presently, air pollution “is one of the severest problems that we face around the world.”

Air pollution increases the risk of other illnesses like heart disease and respiratory issues, something that has had a direct impact on those suffering during the coronavirus outbreak. About one in eight deaths around the world are caused by air pollution.

Additionally, extreme weather events and increased temperature can all have negative effects on public health.

“The extreme weather events are […]

Read the Full Article