The terrible effects of the climate crisis on the lives of children born in 2019
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- Ecological Transitions
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Malnutrition, illnesses of all kinds, anxiety... The lives of children born in 2019 may well not be a long calm river. And this, because of global warming, warns a new study of 35 world institutions published in the scientific journal The Lancet this Thursday, November 14. "Without radical action by all countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, gains in terms of well-being and life expectancy are jeopardized", warns Nick Watts, executive director of this report, called the Lancet Countdown, which annually tracks progress in containing climate change and its effects on health.
At the current rate of warming, children born in 2019 will indeed find themselves in a warmer world of 4°C on average before their 71st birthday. And their health will be threatened by the effects of this increase in temperature throughout their lives, underline the 120 expert authors of the study.
Diarrhea, dengue and cholera
Infants today are already at risk from the impact of climate change on agriculture, the report notes. The reduction in harvests linked to rising temperatures threatens food security and has already increased the prices of certain foodstuffs, explains The Lancet Countdown. Over the past 30 years, the global yield potential of corn and winter wheat have declined by 3% and 4% respectively. France is also directly concerned: since 1961, it has recorded falls of 17.6% and 8% respectively. However, possible child malnutrition can cause growth delays, a weakening of the immune system, and even long-term development problems.
From early childhood, another threat looms: the risks linked to the increase in infectious diseases caused by rising temperatures and changing precipitation patterns. Already, over the past 30 years, the number of days conducive to the development of the bacterium Vibrio, which causes diarrheal diseases, has doubled. For cholera, the increase has reached almost 10% since the beginning of the 1980s. And since the year 2000, there have been nine of the ten most favorable years for the transmission of dengue fever, which now threatens almost half of the world's population. Children are particularly vulnerable to these health risks.
The lungs of teenagers particularly vulnerable to pollution
During adolescence, pollution linked to the consumption of fossil fuels - which continues to increase -, aggravated by the rise in temperatures, on the other hand risks particularly damaging the lungs of the youngest, who are still developing. Decreased lung function, worsening asthma, even increased risk of heart attack and stroke are all threatening pathologies, according to experts. And it would also have economic costs. In 2016, in France, fine particles (PM2.5) not only caused more than 26,000 premature deaths, but also 14 billion euros in economic losses and health costs. If 2016 pollution levels in Europe were to remain unchanged for the lifetime of the current population, these costs could reach 129 billion euros per year, notes The Lancet Countdown.
As for the adulthood of today's children, it will likely be punctuated by severe floods, prolonged droughts and wildfires. Since 2001-2004, 152 countries out of 196 have already experienced an increase in the number of people exposed to these, the financial cost of which per person has been found to be 48 times higher than that of floods, points out the study. Heat waves too, which in 2018 already affected the record number of 220 million people over 65 worldwide, will become a common experience, with their share of risks of stroke and kidney disease, especially for elderly people with chronic illnesses. And these more frequent and longer heat waves will also have consequences for global work capacity. In 2018, 45 billion working hours were already lost compared to 2000, the report recalls.
A call to accelerate the transition
Despite this dramatic scenario, however, the report also highlights some grains of hope: the growth of renewable energies such as electric transport, but also the pressure of the population to fight against climate change. If the Paris Agreement were respected, moreover, a child born in 2019 in the United Kingdom could no longer be confronted with the combustion of coal after his six years, while in France he could no longer buy a car at home. petrol or diesel after he turns 21. Net zero global emissions would be reached by age 31.
We must therefore accelerate in the energy transition, insist the experts, asking that the impacts of climate change on health be at the forefront of the agenda of the United Nations Climate Conference (COP25) in Madrid next month. In France, "measures aimed at reducing carbon emissions must be a priority in all sectors of government", claims in particular the co-author Anneliese Depoux, project manager at the University of Paris. WHO researcher Stella Hartinger warns:
Giulietta Gamberini5 mins
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Comments14JCB wrote on 11/17/2019 at 7:12 PM Report PS to my comment sent two minutes ago (if validated). Italics or underlined passages do not pass, the word "underlined" in my text is useless. I wanted to check some data in the article. That's all. Yours.
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JCB wrote on 11/17/2019 at 7:06 PM Report Hello Madam, I read your article with interest. I have, in fact, a grandson born a month ago. One passage surprised me a little: “Over the past 30 years, the global yield potentials of maize and winter wheat have respectively... Hello Madam, I read your article with interest. I have, in fact, a grandson born a month ago. One passage surprised me a little: “Over the past 30 years, the world yield potential of corn and winter wheat has declined by 3% and 4% respectively. France is also directly concerned: since 1961, it has recorded falls of 17.6% and 8% respectively. I wanted to verify the underlined data because I was convinced of the contrary. In fact, by comparing the 1988 and 2018 figures (30 years) provided by the Ministry of Agriculture, I find that, on the contrary, the yield per hectare of grain maize has increased by more than 21% (stable for the corn seed) and more than 11% for wheat. These statistics can be found here: https://www.epsilon.insee.fr/jspui/bitstream/1/24209/1/CDI_011_a.pdf and http://agreste .agriculture.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/cd2019-4saavprovisoire.pdf Could you be kind enough to tell me if the figures you quote are from the Lancet study or from another source? And if the latter, which one? Perhaps it is the word “potential” that explains the difference between the figures you quote and those I find. But, in this case, I don't understand what the expression “return potential” means when applied to the past tense. Sincerely, PS: I haven't looked at the world statistics but I have the same question about them.To be alerted by email of a reaction to this comment, please enter your email address below:
Mariahà wrote on 11/15/2019 at 1:54 p.m.Report C'est n'importe quoi! Soon, it's a baby that we will put on a podium to harangue the credulous crowds!To be alerted by email of a reaction to this comment, please enter your email address below:
Pemmorea wrote on 11/15/2019 at 12:22 PM Report Ben if our population does not change, we should be able to ensure, the northern Loire area is under food productivity, a lot of fallow land, hobby farms and the climate is warming paradoxically will allow crops that we never did... Well, if our population does not change, we should be able to ensure, the northern Loire area is under food productivity, a lot of fallow land, hobby farms and the warming climate paradoxically will allow crops that we did not do before. An example, the northern limit of the vine for quality wine 50 years ago was the Loire, winegrowers are starting to settle towards the spire and we are going to arrive at the limit of Normandy, some embark on exotic cultures, persimmon, loquats, loquats, chaillotes, We must not forget that in traditional culture the balance of the French population is 45 million inhabitants and 70 is a reef that we are not sure of having made the right choice.To be alerted by email of a reaction to this comment, please enter your email address below:
jeanlucà wrote on 11/14/2019 at 11:07 p.m. Report A shame about this article, how the Tribune, a serious newspaper can endorse such statements. The rise in temperatures has been taking place since 1815 and has generated comfort and well-being in the world . catastrophism sells but be careful not to ... A shame this article, how the Tribune, serious newspaper can endorse such saying. . catastrophism sells but be careful not to tell unverified bullshit. As a friend from Poitevin told me, if you do a study on frogs you don't have any money, if you do a study on the impact of global warming on frogs you have all the money you want.. .. on the condition of going in the direction of the right-thinking.To be alerted by email of a reaction to this comment, please enter your email address below:
Answer by jean on 11/15/2019 at 8:52 Report In view of the last two years 2018 and 2019 with significant droughts, it is reasonable to worry about global warming. Being catastrophic has no interest in you reason, but denied the reality is also irrelevant.pseudo wrote on 11/14/2019 at 7:44 PM Report The new economic dogma does not work so well anymore. We already had a teenager with a disability that doesn't make you cry enough. Now let's move on to children, to "save" the planet. If not in scientific terms, what is factual? You know... The new economic dogma doesn't work so well anymore. We already had a teenager with a disability that doesn't make you cry enough. Now let's move on to children, to "save" the planet. If not in scientific terms, what is factual? Do you know how to measure a temperature on a terrestrial globe? Do you know how to model the climate? do you anticipate the thermal changes of the sun? Do you know how to identify the impacts of changing the belt and the magnetic pole?
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Albertà wrote on 14/11/2019 at 19:38Report Apocalyptic future, according to a "scientific" study by The Lancet Countdown. Its director, Nick Watts, is an Australian doctor, which can justify his interest in the future of global health, but much less the arguments ... Apocalyptic future, according to a "scientific" study by The Lancet Countdown. Its director, Nick Watts, is an Australian doctor, which can justify his interest in the future of global health, but much less the scientific arguments to explain the observed (undeniable) climate change. A "data" search shows the proximity of this organization to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The philanthropy of this billionaire couple raises many doubts, without it being necessary to invoke the famous conspiracy. The bottom line is that the IPCC conclusions are widely doubted by thousands of (real) scientists, but they are rarely mentioned in the media: see for example L'urgence Climatique by François Gervais or Climate and the Money Trail ...To be alerted by email of a reaction to this comment, please enter your email address below:
Fgà wrote on 11/14/2019 at 7:17 p.m. Report It is also necessary to make certain populations of poor countries understand that reproducing at high speed is neither good for the planet nor for them in the short term.To be alerted by email of a reaction to this comment, please enter your email address below:
Maxà wrote on 11/14/2019 at 5:32 PMReport The terrible effects of the birth of children on the climate crisis: In this sense, too, it works.To be alerted by email of a reaction to this comment, please enter your email address below:
Yes but wrote on 11/14/2019 at 2:12 p.m. Report The key word is "adaptation" and for that... it goes through "selection" and not through lamentation!To be alerted by email of a reaction to this comment, please enter your email address below:
Citoyen blaséa wrote on 11/14/2019 at 12:45 PMReport Who here lives enough in real life to notice all these recurring coughs within our social environment? Every year a little more... Allergies, breathing difficulties are the signs of increasingly poor air quality. We... Who here lives enough in real life to notice all these recurring coughs within our social environment? Every year a little more... Allergies, breathing difficulties are the signs of increasingly poor air quality. We will die of this direct pollution long before it regularly reaches 50 degrees...To be alerted by email of a reaction to this comment, please enter your email address below:
Frank wrote on 11/14/2019 at 11:37 AM Note that at the other end of the scale, in the richest countries, we have McDonalds, Haribo and Marlboro which produce equally catastrophic effects on the health of child and teenager, and no one has made fun of it for decades. So n... Note that at the other end of the scale, in the richest countries, we have McDonalds, Haribo and Marlboro which produce equally catastrophic effects on the health of children and adolescents, and everyone nobody cares about it for decades. So don't expect anything from Madrid.To be alerted by email of a reaction to this comment, please enter your email address below:
Response from GABUZO on 11/14/2019 at 1:57 p.m. Report @franck +1. Far be it from me to deny the damage that man does to his environment, but this article seems above all to come out of the com with "big clogs" of an agency that tries to play on children to advance the cause. The first activity...@franck +1. Far be it from me to deny the damage that man does to his environment, but this article seems above all to come out of the com with "big clogs" of an agency that tries to play on children to advance the cause. The first concrete action would have been to cancel COP 25, this would avoid unnecessary travel by so-called experts and self-proclaimed NGOs who will rant about their injunctions and their ready-made solutions without having the slightest criticism, the opponents being excommunicated before even speaking. and meanwhile the liberal society will continue to grow. at least spare us Madrid!Your email will not be displayed publicly. All fields are required.
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