Lancet Planetary Health: Climate change and child health: a scoping review

11 March, 2021

CITATION: Climate change and child health: a scoping review and an expanded conceptual framework

Daniel Helldén et al.

Lancet Planetary Health | volume 5, issue 3, e164-e175, march 01, 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(20)30274-6

SUMMARY

Climate change can have detrimental effects on child health and wellbeing. Despite the imperative for a fuller understanding of how climate change affects child health and wellbeing, a systematic approach and focus solely on children (aged <18 years) has been lacking. In this Scoping Review, we did a literature search on the impacts of climate change on child health from January, 2000, to June, 2019. The included studies explicitly linked an alteration of an exposure to a risk factor for child health to climate change or climate variability. In total, 2970 original articles, reviews, and other documents were identified, of which 371 were analysed. Employing an expanded framework, our analysis showed that the effects of climate change on child health act through direct and indirect pathways, with implications for determinants of child health as well as morbidity and mortality from a range of diseases. This understanding can be further enhanced by using a broader range of research methods, studying overlooked populations and geographical regions, investigating the costs and benefits of mitigation and adaptation for child health, and considering the position of climate change and child health within the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Present and future generations of children bear and will continue to bear an unacceptably high disease burden from climate change.

KEY MESSAGES

There is a growing body of research showing that climate change acts through multiple pathways to negatively affect child health and wellbeing

Despite the imperative for a fuller understanding of how climate change interacts with different determinants to affect child health and wellbeing, gaps persist

A range of research methods are needed to further understanding of vulnerable subpopulations and geographical regions, and of the costs and benefits of mitigation and adaptation for addressing risks

'Climate change will impact the health of children born today throughout their lifetime.'

Best wishes, Neil

Let's build a future where children are no longer dying for lack of healthcare information - Join CHIFA (Child Healthcare Information For All): http://www.hifa.org/forums/chifa-child-health-and-rights

CHIFA profile: Neil Pakenham-Walsh is the coordinator of the HIFA campaign (Healthcare Information For All) and assistant moderator of the CHIFA forum. Twitter: @hifa_org FB: facebook.com/HIFAdotORG neil@hifa.org