Climate Change and Dengue

Colleague Alex Cannera sends this article: Mosquito-Borne Illness Fueled by Climate Change Linked to Spike in Birth Defects in Brazil that begins: As the earth warms and grows more humid, virulent infectious diseases spread by insects are on the rise. Last year, more than 3,000 babies in Brazil were born with a congenital condition of the brain, which may be linked to a mosquito-borne illness called Zika.

Alex writes: Yep. And gang, it’s climate & ocean change. We gotta stop with the mealy-mouthed term “climate change.” Seriously. As far as novel diseases in the US, dengue has reached the Florida Keys. And various other mosquito-borne, tropical diseases are cropping up here.

Thanks, Alex. This is a good example of how climate change is not only something that will affect our children in a few decades, but rather a phenomenon that is happening now. Infectious diseases that are promulgated via mosquitoes or are now reaching the United States. Things like dengue fever are now on our shores.

The only question that remains is how much longer the citizens of Earth will remain content and silent as the effects of climate change grow and ripple around the globe.