tailieunhanh - Global Climate Change and Child Health: A review of pathways, impacts and measures to improve the evidence base*

In Europe, an environmental policy for the protection of children’s health was established at the Third Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health in 1999. At the Fourth Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health in 2004, the Children's Environment and Health Action Plan for Europe was adopted and the member countries committed themselves to developing and implementing national environment and health action plans for children by 2007. In response to these developments, Denmark and Norway began national epidemiological research projects on child health. In Japan, the Ministry of Environment established a study panel on children’s. | UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre Global Climate Change and Child Health A review of pathways impacts and measures to improve the evidence base Yoko Akachi Donna Goodman David Parker DISCUSSION PAPER IDP No. 2009-03 June 2009 Abstract This paper reviews the published evidence of pathways and impacts of global climate change on child health. The review was occasioned by the recognition that most of the work to date on climate change and health lacks clear focus on the children s dimension while the climate change and children literature tends to be brief or imprecise on the complex health aspects. Studies were identified by searching the PubMed database for articles published before April 2009. Publications by agencies . UNICEF WHO IPPC were also included based upon review. A list of references was developed that provide evidence to the linkages between climate change and health outcomes and on specific health outcomes for children. The analysis explores the hypothesis of disproportionate vulnerability of children s health to environmental factors specifically those most closely related to climate change. Based upon scientific and policy research conducted to date there is found to be substantial evidence of disproportionate vulnerability of children in response to climate change. The diseases likely to be potentiated by climate change are already the primary causes of child morbidity and mortality including vector-borne diseases water-borne diseases and air-borne diseases. For this reason further research assessment and monitoring of child health in respect to climate change is critical. Proposals are made for governments to integrate environmental health indicators into data collection in order to accurately assess the state of child health in relation to other age groups and its sensitivity to climate change. unite for children unicefw This paper was initiated as a background review for the UNICEF IRC Policy Review Paper on Climate Change and Children UNICEF .