Climate Change and Human Health: Emerging Diseases, Maternal Risks, and Ageing Challenges with Insights from India
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Climate Change and Human Health: Emerging Diseases, Maternal Risks, and Ageing Challenges with Insights from India
Authors: Mayank Bhooshan Ashutosh
Dr. Poornima Shukla (Assistant Professor)
Kanpur Vidya Mandir Mahila Maha Vidyalaya Swaroop Nagar Kanpur
Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India
Email: mayankbhu22@gmail.com
Abstract
Objectives: To synthesize global and India-specific evidence on how climate change affects three critical health domains: emerginginfectious diseases, maternal health outcomes, and aging-related vulnerabilities. Methods: A mixed-methods approach was adopted, combining a structured literature review and qualitative field interviews in India. Literature was sourced from PubMed, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, IndMED, and Indian government databases. Ten in-depth interviews were conducted with older adults and middle-aged participants in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to complement the review with local lived experiences. Results: Global evidence demonstrates that climate change is expanding the geographic range of vector-borne diseases, increasing waterborne outbreaks, and worsening pregnancy risks through heat stress and nutritional deficits. Older adults are highly vulnerable to cardiovascular and respiratory complications during extreme events. In India, dengue and chikungunya have spread to new regions; floods in Bihar and Assam repeatedly disrupt maternal healthcare; and record-breaking heatwaves in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh raise mortality among elderly populations. Conclusions: Climate change amplifies existing health inequities across vulnerable populations. India exemplifies how demographic pressures and climate extremes converge, underscoring the urgency for climate-resilient health systems, strengthened surveillance, and targeted adaptation policies.
Keywords: climate change, health risks, infectious diseases, pregnancy outcomes, older adults, climate adaptation, vulnerable populations, India
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