Impact of climate change and human health in Spain. The first approach to the State-of-the-Art.

Abstract

Spain is reaching the forecasts set by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) since 1990-1992. To get a consensus and reach a minimum governmental awareness of the problem, numerous global meetings were necessary in Spain, like in other countries. However, it was clear that there is a need to transfer this reality to society clearly, concisely and forcefully, influencing changes in social norms, political priorities and cultural values. The scientific literature agrees that the most important climate change events affecting human health are: high temperatures, heat waves and ultraviolet radiation, as well as air, soil and water pollution. In addition, torrential rains, droughts, forest fires, diminishing water resources, coastal phenomena and endangered habitats could be also included.. The aim of this chapter is to present the state of the art on the effects of climate change on health in Spain. So, methodologically, diseases exacerbated by climate change detected in Spain were organized according to medical specialities and climatic elements, analysing morbidity and mortality. Spain increased its population from 2000 to 2020 by 16.6% and stabilised its mortality at 9.01‰ (omitting Covid-19). Other reasons aside, increases in morbidity or mortality above these demographic values may be due to the effects of climate change. Thus, the data consulted indicate that 26.7% of mortality is due to cancers, which increase in women (26% between 2000 and 2020) and stabilise in men.

This is followed by heart disease (18.8%), which has fallen since 2000; digestive diseases (11.8%), which have increased by 20.3%; and respiratory and neurological diseases (13.1% and 12%, respectively), which have stabilised since the effect of Covid-19 has been cancelled out; this zoonotic disease, in 2020 alone, increased mortality by 1.37‰, and thus increased mortality due to infectious diseases to 18.2% of all deaths.. Climate change-related illnesses increase more in women. After reviewing this, we conclude that, in addition to the need to reduce greenhouse gases, mitigation measures should include self-protection against heat, ultraviolet rays and water purification, as well as increased research on the environmental effects of climate on human health.. Any of these measures can be understood as "disease sinks".