Children’s environmental health: Existing strategies

Oct 14m 2010

Source: NIH

National Library of Medicine

National Center for Biotechnology Information

Photo Source: Unsplash

Existing strategies

A reasonable public health strategy addresses present-day health problems while building adaptive capacity to respond to worsening future impacts from climate change. Although climate change is already creating a substantial global burden of disease, the current DALYs due to unsafe water, lack of sanitation and hygiene, urban air pollution, indoor smoke from solid fuels, and lead exposure dwarf the present-day effects of climate change on health (WHO 2002a).

Numerous programs exist into which children’s environmental health platforms, with specific attention to climate change adaptation, could be incorporated (St Louis and Hess 2008). Integration of climate change adaptation within global health strategy could mean both better sustainability of the existing programs as the climate becomes increasingly unpredictable and better inclusion of these climate change efforts in the near-term global health programs by coupling with programs that already have funding. In addition, climate change preparedness is key to the long-term sustainability of most of the United Nations’ eight Millennium Development Goals, with a target year of 2015: eradicating extreme poverty and hunger (goal 1), promoting gender equality (goal 3), reducing child mortality (goal 4), improving maternal health (goal 5), combating HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases (goal 6), and ensuring environmental sustainability (goal 7) (United Nations Development Programme 2009). Climate change is expected to act primarily as an effect modifier in exacerbating existing health disparities, and thus its inclusion in planning is essential for the success of global health efforts (McMichael and Butler 2004; Witherspoon 2009).

Another area that integrates well with pediatric prevention efforts around climate change is the global demand from women for increased access to birth control (Costello et al. 2009). Although a reduced birth rate does not necessarily equate with reduced GHG emissions, family planning via provision of contraception, female literacy, and education, as well as property rights for women, will reduce poverty and aid sustainable development (United Nations Development Programme 2009). Increased access to desired birth control would result in a reduction of potentially 200 million unintended pregnancies per year. Additionally, spacing of pregnancies could protect unborn children, because intervals of 15 and 75 months between pregnancies result in lower rates of fetal loss (DaVanzo et al. 2007; United Nations Population Fund 2009). Health benefits for young children are also possible, because some studies suggest that in certain populations short birth intervals have a negative effect on children’s nutritional status (Dewey and Cohen 2007). In addition, there is evidence for a window of ideal spacing of children for the mother’s health. Maternal morbidity and mortality decrease if the interpregnancy interval is > 6 months but < 5 years (Conde-Agudelo and Belizán 2000). Interventions that promote family planning can thus potentially reduce children’s exposure and susceptibility to climate-sensitive impacts.

Last, children can play a role in adaptation, namely in building resilience. Children should attend school where opportunities exist for curriculum development that best prepares them for expected changes. There are international precedents for such action in the sustainable-school and health-promoting schools movements (Davis and Cooke 2007).

BECOME a Climate Change Community Champion

Share the wealth of health with your colleagues and friends by sharing this article with 3 people today.

If this article was helpful to you, donate to the Shidonna Raven Garden and Cook E-Magazine Today. Thank you in advance.