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Never Mind the Polar Bears, Global Warming Could Give You Malaria

Posted on: Tuesday, 27 March 2007, 18:00 CDT

By DIANA APPLEYARD

THE image of a polar bear standing forlornly on a melting ice cap has become synonymous with global warming - but climate change is already having an impact much closer to home.

Scientists are warning that by the middle of the century Britain will be hit by diseases never experienced here before, such as malaria, tick-borne encephalitis and dengue fever, all as a direct result of global warming.

Furthermore, by 2050, the Department of Health says 2,000 people will die each year from these 'new' diseases. There will also be an extra 9,000 food poisoning deaths, plus 2,000 cataract and 30,000 skin cancer cases.

With summer temperatures set to rise by as much as three degrees centigrade, heat-related deaths will also soar and there will be an increase in respiratory illnesses such as asthma.

And as sea levels rise, there will there be many more drownings and injuries due to flooding.

Meanwhile, burst river banks will lead to contaminated water and illnesses such as typhoid and dysentery.

One of the leading experts in this field, Professor Jangu Banatvala, emeritus professor of clinical virology at the University of London, says: 'Climate change will be the major factor affecting our nation's health this century.

'Disease-carrying mosquitoes will become widespread in the UK, bringing an epidemic of infectious diseases such as malaria, dengue fever and West Nile virus.' So serious is the issue that earlier this month, the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution called for the potential effects of climate change to be taken into account in government planning and transport decisions.

Meanwhile, the Health Protection Agency is calling for funding to train specialists in the infectious diseases that will emerge in the UK over the next 50 years.

Yet there is a glimmer of good news in all this: some diseases will disappear as the climate warms up. Here we list the illnesses scientists are predicting will become more prevalent, and those that will not survive.

MOSQUITO-BORNE DISEASES

WARMER temperatures are already drawing mosquitoes infected with MALARIA to Europe from North Africa, and there are now cases being reported in previously unaffected countries such as Italy and Spain.

If temperatures continue to rise, it is predicted that we will see malaria in this country as early as 2010. Globally, more than a million people die from the disease each year and this could double by 2030.

Also transmitted by mosquitoes,

WEST NILE VIRUS can cause encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) and meningitis. There is no treatment or vaccine. Instead, sufferers are monitored and given intravenous fluids.

Already America is seeing a dramatic rise in cases: there have been 600 deaths there in the past four years. In the UK cases are rare, but a research project is underway at the London School For Hygiene And Tropical Diseases investigating the possibility of its emergence here.

DENGUE FEVER is a debilitating viral illness transmitted by mosquitoes, which is widespread in South-East Asia. It causes fever, headaches, muscle and joint pain, and can result in fatal haemorrhaging.

There is no treatment apart from rest and fluids given intravenously.

According to the World Health Organisation, dengue fever threatens about 40 per cent of the world's population. The only way to reduce the risk of infection is to avoid mosquito bites.

TICK-BORNE DISEASES

PERMANENT brain damage, memory loss or even death are the potential legacies of tickborne ENCEPHALITIS. Infected ticks are already being found on deer in parts of Europe. There is a vaccine, but an effective treatment has yet to be found.

WATERBORNE DISEASES

EXPERTS are predicting a rise in AMOEBIC DYSENTERY, the more dangerous form of the disease, which can prove fatal.

The danger comes if the bacteria break out of the intestine. If they do, they can cause peritonitis (inflammation of the abdominal wall lining) or form cysts in the liver. However, it is treatable with antibiotics.

TYPHOID still exists in this country, but outbreaks have been few and far between. It is a highly infectious disease caused by typhoid bacteria lodging in the digestive system. Symptoms begin with a headache and a rising temperature, and lead to vomiting, diarrhoea and delirium.

If untreated with antibiotics, it can cause vital organs to stop working, resulting in internal bleeding and death.

LEGIONNAIRE'S DISEASE another highly-infectious killer spread by bacteria - is found in contaminated water.

Symptoms include headache, muscle pain, fever, vomiting and diarrhoea.

Around 10 per cent of cases are fatal.

SKIN CANCER/ EYE CATARACTS

THE ozone layer has become depleted and, as a result, we are less 'protected' against the sun's ultraviolet harmful radiation, which comes in two forms UV-A and UV-B - both of which can be harmful to skin cells.

Cataracts are caused by exposure to UV-B radiation.

RESPIRATORY DISEASE

THERE are already three million people in the UK with ASTHMA. But this number is lilely to rise as global warming causes the air to become contaminated with toxic gases that have become 'trapped' within the atmosphere.

Seven million people in the UK suffer from HAYFEVER, which is caused by an allergic reaction to the pollen released when plants flower. Experts believe the milder climate is likely to lead to plants flowering earlier and for longer.

As the planet warms up, it's expected we will see a 50 per cent rise in sufferers by 2050.

FOOD POISONING

WITHIN just over a decade we will see 4,000 extra cases of food poisoning each year - heat allows deadly bacteria to breed. Scientists have established that unusually hot summers are directly linked to SALMONELLA.

The largest recent outbreak in the UK was in the summer of 2004, when 350 people in Basingstoke contracted the disease. Nationally, more than 30,000 cases were reported last year and this is predicted to rise.

Symptoms include diarrhoea and vomiting.

About 5 per cent of cases are fatal, although most clear up within five to ten days.

HEAT-RELATED DEATHS

IN 2003, the heatwave across Europe killed 30,000 people, including 2,000 in Britain.

Temperatures soared to an unprecedented 36C in London, and in Bosnia they reached 41C for the first time.

Such extreme temperatures are highly damaging to people's health. The body starts to cook when it reaches 42C, causing the protein in each cell to change irreversibly.

The brain also begins to shut down, because muscles stop working and the heart can no longer pump sufficient blood to it.

Rising body temperatures also lead to blood clotting, which increases the risk of STROKES and HEART ATTACKS. The elderly are most vulnerable because their bodies are less effective at regulating temperature.

The World Health Organisation predicts the number of heatrelated deaths across the globe will double by 2020.

AND THE GOOD NEWS. . .

EVERY year 60,000 people die from cold-related illnesses in the UK. These include hypothermia, cold and flu viruses, and heart attacks brought on by prolonged exposure to cold air.

The majority of cold-weather deaths are caused by coronary and cerebral thrombosis (clots in blood vessels around the heart and brain). Statistics show a peak in these deaths two days after a cold spell.

As winter temperatures rise by 1 per cent over the next 20 years, we should see a reduction in these cold-related deaths by as much as 20,000.

In the winter, more than 40 per cent of road accidents are caused by skidding on ice, and as snow and heavy frosts become a rarity, these figures will fall by as much as 30 per cent by 2050.

Source: Daily Mail; London (UK)

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