Weather related disasters increased by 46% from 2007 to 2016, review says

Climate change is already having significant effects on health, an international team has reported in the Lancet.1

An increase in the number of weather related disasters, greater exposure to heatwaves, and an increased risk of dengue fever because conditions are more favourable for mosquitoes are cited in support of the contention from the Countdown on Climate Change and Health team.

But four members of the team, appearing at a briefing at the Science Media Centre in London, said that they had not attempted to draw up a balance sheet that included possible benefits of increasing temperatures.

“We’re not ducking the potential benefits,” said Hugh Montgomery, co-chair of the group and director of the Institute for Human Health and …