Climate Change and Disease Dynamics in India

Planetary health is today inextricably linked to population health. Climate change, an integral part of planetary health, is foremost among global environmental changes affecting human health. This mammoth challenge is characterized by the potential risk to cripple health systems worldwide and profoundly alter disease dynamics, thereby threatening the well-knit fabric as well as growth of society. Unfortunately, much of the evidence for these linkages has come largely from the developed world. By focusing on India, one of the significant developing countries of the global economy, Climate Change and Disease Dynamics in India aims to fill a crucial gap in the fields of climate science and public health.

The book is divided into three main aspects: fundamentals, impacts and applied. By examining these aspects and more, the book seeks to explore the multitude of issues related to climate change and disease dynamics; right from the basics to the bedside to the boardroom. Each chapter reviews relevant global and India-specific evidence, and also the implication of that knowledge in programmatic terms and policy implications.

Key Features:

• Brings out the relationship between climate change and diseases
• State of the art tools such as GIS have been described for health impact assessment
• Adaptation strategies have been discussed in a developing economy context
• Putative linkages in areas such as mental health have been holistically addressed

Contents:   

Fundamentals Section
Global environmental change
Climate epidemiology
Climate change attributable burden of disease
Modelling for future health impacts
Indian climatology in the context of human health

Evidence Section: climate extremes outcomes
Thermal stress
Climate disasters
Sea level rise

Evidence Section: climate sensitive diseases
Malnutrition
Vector-borne diseases
Diarrhoeal diseases
Respiratory diseases
Mental health
Emerging and re-emerging diseases

Applied Section
Geographic Information System
Resources and infrastructure
Lifestyle
Vulnerability and adaptation
Economic of scaling up
Health communication