Global and Environmental Health Issues

1Running head: GLOBAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
Global and Environmental Health Issues
Student’s Name
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2GLOBAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
Global and Environmental Health Issues
Influence of climate change on vector and host abundance
When rainfall increases due to climate change, it leads to flooding which provides
more feasible areas for the breeding of vectors. When there is flooding, an area
experience cases of stagnant water which provides a suitable breeding ground for
vectors such as mosquitoes leading to an abundance of hosts and vectors. For
example, after the heavy flooding in Louisiana in August 2016, the breeding sites for
the Aedes mosquito were increased, and the officials were prepared for the outbreak
of the Zika and West Nile viruses. ("Climate Risk and Spread of Vector-Borne
Diseases", 2018)
Increased humidity could also lead to eggs hatching faster since hatching is faster
in hotter climates thereby leading to an abundance of both host and vector within a
short period.
Influence of climate change on local prevalence of disease-causing parasites and
pathogens
Insects are dependent on external temperature to survive since they cannot
regulate their body temperature. Therefore changes in the global temperature
significantly influence the geographical range of the vectors and pathogens. ("Climate
Risk and Spread of Vector-Borne Diseases", 2018)
Increase in temperature may lengthen the season of the vector in a certain
geographical area and may also increase the range of the geographical area of the
vector. For instance, as the temperatures rise in the equatorial areas, warm- weather
vectors such as mosquitoes can move into higher altitudes. In some areas in the
United States, the season of the mosquitoes carrying the Zika Virus is lengthening due
to warming. (“Climate Risk and Spread of Vector-Borne Diseases”, 2018)

3GLOBAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
Influence of climate change on human population behaviour and disease resilience
People migrate due to several reasons such as climate change. When crowds
migrate, they are exposed to viruses to which they are not immune.. In the course of
migration, people take diseases to urban centres and new regions. In the event of a
crowd migrating, they cause overcrowding in already crowded areas. Populations
carrying infectious diseases easily spread the infections faster in congested areas
( "Climate Risk and Spread of Vector-Borne Diseases", 2018).
Influence of foreign policy on public health issues and the agencies involved.
Foreign policies such as policies dealing with trade, diplomacy and security have
significantly influenced public health in several ways including;
1) Emergence and re-emergence of communicable diseases
Increase in international travel has led to spread of infections such as HIV/AIDS,
malaria, tuberculosis, and cholera to new areas. Additionally, rising levels of food
handling processes, and sales worldwide have led to complexity in controlling
infections.For instance, in the European Union, the free movement of goods has led to
difficulties by governments to protect citizens from communicable infections. The
constitution of the global market has equally led to escalated economic competition
forcing the governments to reduce expenditure such as the funding of public health
leading to unpreparedness in handling emerging infections (Scolnik & Scolnik, 2012).
The World Health Organization has affirmed that emerging infections
constitute a global threat and needs a unified global response. The diseases can
develop anywhere and spread faster through trade and travel hence a global risk.
2) Initiation of major health diplomatic policies
Health diplomacy has embraced both international health agreements and efforts
to promote health interventions supporting the objectives of foreign policy. World