Answering questions at the 29th United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP29) held in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, Issa said that the climate crisis affects human health in many ways, and that injuries caused by extreme weather events, epidemics and heat waves are accompanied by He noted that the problems are some of these effects.
Stating that many discussions were held on this issue at COP29, Issa said: “Extreme heat has serious effects on heart health. We see a serious increase in deaths caused by extreme heat every year. Climate change endangers the health of people from all groups and poses greater risks for the health of vulnerable people. Among these “We can count the elderly, children and pregnant women. In addition to these groups, the climate crisis also puts an additional burden on people who are already struggling with health problems.” he said.
Issa stated that there is a relationship between the climate crisis and epidemic diseases, and the first thing that stands out in this regard is the change of region of disease-carrying creatures.
Citing mosquitoes that carry malaria and dengue fever as examples of animals that change regions due to global warming, Issa emphasized that such situations lead to a change in the flow of epidemic diseases.
Issa made the following assessment:
“Climate change can definitely lead to another epidemic. In the programs carried out by WHO at COP29 for a week, many evidence has been shown that the climate crisis increases the risks of epidemics. The main reason for this is that diseases that can cause epidemics often arise due to people’s relationships with nature and biodiversity. Nature, biodiversity, climate change and human health are interconnected. We are seeing changing situations in people’s relations with nature due to the climate crisis. possibility.”
HEALTH AGENDA AT COP29
Pointing out that the climate crisis also causes many problems in accessing health services, Issa stated that there are not enough health workers, especially in the global south countries, which are among the most at-risk regions against the climate crisis, and that extreme weather events cause serious damage to the already inadequate health infrastructures.
Issa concluded his words as follows:
“COP 29 had many different impacts on the health community. It was very good for us to have a section for health here. We published a special report on the subject and devoted a full day just to the topic ‘Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health’. This brought many countries together and Azerbaijan and Tongo became the two new countries that signed this alliance. Apart from this, a special day was allocated to human development and health in the COP calendar. On the other hand, putting health at the center of the negotiations, mitigation, adaptation and “More needs to be done to think about where to position this factor in financing matters.”
AA