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Climate change is making diseases spread more easily, and one of these diseases is diarrhoea. A new study led by researchers at the University of Surrey found that things like temperature, humidity, and how long the day is can make diarrhoea diseases happen more often.
Weather changes increase Campylobacteriosis spread
The study was led by Dr. Giovanni Lo Iacono and published in the journal PLoS Computational Biology. The researchers looked at how changes in the weather are connected to the spread of a disease called Campylobacteriosis. This disease is caused by bacteria and it gives people diarrhea and stomach pain.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says that this kind of infection is the most common cause of bacterial gastroenteritis (stomach flu) in people all over the world. The symptoms are usually mild, but it can be very dangerous for very young children, old people, and people with weak immune systems. Campylobacter is one of the four main causes of diarrhoea diseases in the world.
The researchers wanted to see if the weather affects how often people get Campylobacteriosis. They looked at almost one million cases that were reported in England and Wales over the last twenty years. They also made a new math model to compare it with the weather at that time.
When they looked at the data, they saw that the number of people getting Campylobacteriosis didn’t change much when the temperature was below eight degrees Celsius. But for every five-degree Celsius increase in temperature, the number of infections went up to one per million.
Climate change increases disease spread
The researchers also saw a strong connection between how long the day is (more than 10 hours) and how often the disease happens. This connection was stronger when the humidity was between 75 and 80 per cent. They didn’t see any connection between rainfall and wind speed and the spread of Campylobacteriosis.
Giovanni Lo Iacono, the lead researcher of the study, says that this information is very important. Diseases like Campylobacteriosis don’t just cause problems for the person who is sick, they also have a big impact on society. This puts more pressure on health services all over the world.
He says, "Increasing temperature, humidity and day length are also associated with increases in campylobacteriosis. But we are not entirely sure why this happens." According to them, this could be because hot weather helps these harmful bacteria to survive and spread. He has also expressed apprehension that it may be related to the behaviour and interaction of people during the time of illness.
He further says that climate change not only affects the environment but can also harm our health by contributing to the spread of infectious diseases.
Diarrhoea may malnourish under-five kids
Gordon Nicholls, a visiting professor who was part of the study, says that environmental data can help us understand how diseases spread. This information is important because it can help identify areas where outbreaks might happen. This can help make sure these areas have enough resources to treat people and stop the disease from spreading.
Diarrhoea and related diseases are killing millions of children every year. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2019, 3.7 lakh children died from these diseases.
The WHO also says that diarrhea is the second biggest cause of death in children under five years old. Every year, there are 170 crore cases of diarrhea diseases in children around the world. Diarrhea is a major cause of malnutrition in children under five years old all over the world.
Another study published in the journal Nature Communications found that droughts are getting worse because of rising temperatures, and this will also increase the number of diarrhea cases in children.
The study found that if there is a drought for six months, the risk of diarrhea can increase by five percent. If the drought is severe, this risk can increase to 8 percent.
The study also found that deaths from diarrhea are not the only problem. Diarrhea can also affect the growth and development of children who survive the disease. The WHO estimates that by 2050, there will be an additional 32,954 child deaths each year from diarrhea because of climate change.
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