Impacts of Climate Change in Bangladesh and its Consequences on Public Health

Golam Kibria*

Centre for Environment and Climate Change Research (CECCR), Bangladesh

Hashinur Rahman Pavel

Centre for Environment and Climate Change Research (CECCR), Bangladesh

Md. Rashed Miah

Centre for Environment and Climate Change Research (CECCR), Bangladesh

Md. Raisul Islam

Centre for Environment and Climate Change Research (CECCR), Bangladesh

*Corresponding author: golam_kibria69@yahoo.com

Abstract

Climate change can affect many aspects of our lives, for example, health and environment, access to natural resources, safety and security, agriculture and food production. Health issues are the most crucial and burning difficulties for human beings in all of these aspects. The scope of this review considered commonly used methodologies for climate change-induced diseases research and assessment of climate-induced health problems throughout Bangladesh. Surveys, key informant interviews (KII), focus group discussion (FGD), registered hospital visit patient data as well as and other similar methodologies are found popular in this research area. Negligible studies are found that used experimental method including laboratory analysis and registered hospital visit of patient information. Very few experimental studies observed water sample tests and human health-related samples like urine and blood pressure. People living in the coastal part has climate-induced crisis like salinity intrusion, cyclone, storm surge that lead to health problems like diarrhea, cholera, skin diseases, typhoid, chicken pox. While people living in both drought-prone and flood prone areas have health problems like diarrhea, cholera, fever, and skin diseases. People living in the urban and the hilly regions have climate induced crisis of increased temperature and they suffer from vector-borne diseases. Waterborne communicable diseases are the most common climate-induced diseases found in this review. Waterborne non-communicable diseases like hypertension, pre-eclampsia, eclampsia and gynecological problems during pregnancy are common and women suffers a lot. Blood pressure and related cardiovascular diseases, jaundice, and respiratory issues are also getting worse day by day which has strong connection with climate change effects like temperature, rainfall and salinity.

Keywords: Climate-induced, Communicable, Health, Salinity, Vector-borne, Waterborne

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3126/josem.v1i3.48002

Conflicts of interest: None
Supporting agencies: None

Received 30.06.2022; Revised 19.08.2022; Accepted 27.08.2022

Cite This Article: Kibria, G., Pavel, H.R., Miah, M.R., & Islam, M.R. (2022). Impacts of Climate Change in Bangladesh and its Consequences on Public Health. Journal of Sustainability and Environmental Management, 1(3), 359-370. doi: https://doi.org/10.3126/josem.v1i3.48002

Download

References

Abedin, M.A., Collins, A.E., Habiba, U., & Shaw, R. (2019). Climate Change, Water Scarcity, and Health Adaptation in Southwestern Coastal Bangladesh. International Journal of Disaster Risk Science, 10(1), 28–42. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13753-018-0211-8

Afrin, N., Habiba, U., Das, R.R., Auyon, S. T., & Islam, M. A. (2018). Impact and vulnerability assessment on climate change of Jessore and Mymensingh districts in Bangladesh. Progressive Agriculture, 29(4), 320–335.

Agrawala, S., Ota, T., Ahmed, A. U., Smith, J., & Aalst, M. van. (2003). Development and climate change in Bangladesh: Focus on coastal flooding and the sundarbans. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. https://www.oecd.org/env/cc/21055658.pdf

Al-Amin, A. Q., Kari, F., & Alam, G. M. (2013). Global warming and climate change: Prospects and challenges toward long-term policies in Bangladesh. International Journal of Global Warming, 5(1), 67–83. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJGW.2013.051483

Alam, M. B., & Rahman, K. M. A. (2017). Women and climate change in Bangladesh. Cross-Cultural Communication, 13(8), 7–9. https://doi.org/10.3968/9858

Amin, M.R., Tareq, S.M., & Rahman, S.H. (2011). Impacts of Climate Change on Public Health: Bangladesh Perspective. Global Journal of Environmental Research, 5(3), 97–105.

Ashrafuzzaman, M., & Furini, G.L. (2019). Climate change and human health linkages in the context of globalization: An overview from global to southwestern coastal region of Bangladesh. Environment International, 127, 402–411. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2019.03.020

Basak, J.K., Titumir, R.A.M., & Dey, N.C. (2013). Climate Change in Bangladesh: A Historical Analysis of Temperature and Rainfall Data. Journal of Environment, 2(2), 41–46.

Carrico, A.R., Donato, K.M., Best, K.B., & Gilligan, J. (2020). Extreme weather and marriage among girls and women in Bangladesh. Global Environmental Change, 65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2020.102160

Chakraborty, R., Khan, K.M., Dibaba, D.T., Khan, M.A., Ahmed, A., & Islam, M. Z. (2019). Health implications of drinking water salinity in coastal areas of Bangladesh. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(19), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16193746

Chowdhury, M. A., Hasan, M. K., Hasan, M. R., & Younos, T. B. (2020). Climate change impacts and adaptations on health of Internally Displaced People (IDP): An exploratory study on coastal areas of Bangladesh. Heliyon, 6(9), e05018. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e05018

Dewan, A.M., Corner, R., Hashizume, M., & Ongee, E. T. (2013). Typhoid Fever and Its Association with Environmental Factors in the Dhaka Metropolitan Area of Bangladesh: A Spatial and Time-Series Approach. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 7(1), 12–15. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001998

Ebi, K.L., Boyer, C., Bowen, K. J., Frumkin, H., & Hess, J. (2018). Monitoring and evaluation indicators for climate change-related health impacts, risks, adaptation, and resilience. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 15(9), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15091943

Elahi, K.M. (2016). Climate change and health impacts in Bangladesh. Advances in Asian Human-Environmental Research, 207–219. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23684-1_12

Fagliano, J.A., & Diez Roux, A.V. (2018). Climate change, urban health, and the promotion of health equity. PLoS Medicine, 15(7), 8–11. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1002621

Garai, J. (2014). The impacts of climate change on the livelihoods of coastal people in bangladesh: A sociological study. Climate Change Management, 151–163. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-04489-7_11

Haines, A., Kovats, R.S., Campbell-Lendrum, D., & Corvalan, C. (2006). Climate change and human health: Impacts, vulnerability and public health. Public Health, 120(7), 585–596. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhe.2006.01.002

Haque, M.A., Yamamoto, S.S., Malik, A.A., & Sauerborn, R. (2012). Households' perception of climate change and human health risks: A community perspective. Environmental Health: A Global Access Science Source, 11(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1186/1476-069X-11-1

Haque, M., Pervin, M., Sultana, S., & Huq, S. (2019). Towards establishing a national mechanism to address losses and damages: A case study from Bangladesh. Climate Risk Management, Policy and Governance, 451–473). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-72026-5

Hasan, S.M., & Shovon, M.B.S. (2019). Women's vulnerability due to climate change in the coastal area of Bangladesh. Proceedings on International Conference on Disaster Risk Management, 349–354.

Hashizume, M., Armstrong, B., Wagatsuma, Y., Faruque, A.S.G., Hayashi, T., & Sack, D.A. (2008). Rotavirus infections and climate variability in Dhaka, Bangladesh: A time-series analysis. Epidemiology and Infection, 136(9), 1281–1289. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0950268807009776

Hashizume, M, Armstrong, B., Hajat, S., Wagatsuma, Y., Faruque, A. S. G., Hayashi, T., & Sack, D. A. (2007). Association between climate variability and hospital visits for non-cholera diarrhoea in Bangladesh: Effects and vulnerable groups. International Journal of Epidemiology, 36(5), 1030–1037. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dym148

Hashizume, Masahiro, Armstrong, B., Hajat, S., Wagatsuma, Y., Faruque, A. S. G., Hayashi, T., & Sack, D. A. (2008). The effect of rainfall on the incidence of cholera in Bangladesh. Epidemiology, 19(1), 103–110. https://doi.org/10.1097/EDE.0b013e31815c09ea

Hathaway, J., & Maibach, E. W. (2018). Health Implications of Climate Change: a Review of the Literature About the Perception of the Public and Health Professionals. Current Environmental Health Reports, 5(1), 197–204. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40572-018-0190-3

Hayward, G., & Ayeb-Karlsson, S. (2021). 'Seeing with Empty Eyes': a systems approach to understand climate change and mental health in Bangladesh. Climatic Change, 165(1). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-021-03053-9

Hossain, B., Shi, G., Ajiang, C., Sarker, M.N.I., Sohel, M.S., Sun, Z., & Hamza, A. (2021). Impact of climate change on human health: evidence from riverine island dwellers of Bangladesh. International Journal of Environmental Health Research. https://doi.org/10.1080/09603123.2021.1964447

Hossain, B., Sohel, M.S., & Ryakitimbo, C.M. (2020). Climate change induced extreme flood disaster in Bangladesh: Implications on people's livelihoods in the Char Village and their coping mechanisms. Progress in Disaster Science, 6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pdisas.2020.100079

Huq, A., Sack, R.B., Nizam, A., Longini, I.M., Nair, G.B., Ali, A., Morris, J.G., Khan, M.N.H., Siddique, A.K., Yunus, M., Albert, M.J., Sack, D.A., & Colwell, R. R. (2005). Critical Factors Influencing the Occurrence of Vibrio cholerae in the Environment of Bangladesh. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 71(8), 4645–4654. https://doi.org/10.1128/AEM.71.8.4645

Huq, N., Hugé, J., Boon, E., & Gain, A.K. (2015). Climate change impacts in agricultural communities in rural areas of coastal bangladesh: A tale of many stories. Sustainability, 7(7), 8438–8460. https://doi.org/10.3390/su7078437

IPCC. (2021). Climate change 2021: The physical science basis summary for policymakers working group I contribution to the sixth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

IPCC a. (2014). Climate change 2014: Synthesis report summary.

Kabir, M.I., Rahman, M.B., Smith, W., Lusha, M. A.F., & Milton, A.H. (2016). Climate change and health in Bangladesh: A baseline cross-sectional survey. Global Health Action, 9(1). https://doi.org/10.3402/gha.v9.29609

Kabir, R., Khan, H.T.A., Ball, E., & Caldwell, K. (2014). Climate change and public health situations in the coastal areas of Bangladesh. International Journal of Social Science Studies, 2(3), 109–116. https://doi.org/10.11114/ijsss.v2i3.426

Kabir, R., Khan, H.T.A., Ball, E., & Caldwell, K. (2016). Climate Change Impact: The Experience of the Coastal Areas of Bangladesh Affected by Cyclones Sidr and Aila. Journal of Environmental and Public Health. https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/9654753

Karim, M.F., & Mimura, N. (2008). Impacts of climate change and sea-level rise on cyclonic storm surge floods in Bangladesh. Global Environmental Change, 18(3), 490–500. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2008.05.002

Khan, A.E., Ireson, A., Kovats, S., Mojumder, S.K., Khusru, A., Rahman, A., & Vineis, P. (2011). Drinking water salinity and maternal health in coastal Bangladesh: Implications of climate change. Environmental Health Perspectives, 119(9), 1328–1332. https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1002804

McMichael, A.J. (2013). Globalization, climate change, and human health. New England Journal of Medicine, 368(14), 1335–1343. https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmra1109341

Minar, M.H., Hossain, M.B., & Shamsuddin, M.D. (2013). Climate change and coastal zone of Bangladesh: Vulnerability, resilience and adaptability. Middle East Journal of Scientific Research, 13(1), 114–120. https://doi.org/10.5829/idosi.mejsr.2013.13.1.64121

Morris, G.P., Reis, S., Beck, S. A., Fleming, L. E., Adger, W. N., Benton, T. G., & Depledge, M. H. (2017). Scoping the proximal and distal dimensions of climate change on health and wellbeing. Environmental Health: A Global Access Science Source, 16, 69–76. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12940-017-0329-y

Nahian, M. A., Ahmed, A., Lázár, A. N., Hutton, C. W., Salehin, M., & Streatfield, P. K. (2018). Drinking water salinity associated health crisis in coastal Bangladesh. Elementa, 6(2), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.143

Neelormi, S., adri, N., & Ahmed, A. U. (2009). Gender dimensions of differential health effects of climate change induced water-logging: A case study from coastal Bangladesh. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 6(14), 142026. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1307/6/4/142026

Nelson, D. I. (2003). Health impact assessment of climate change in Bangladesh. Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 23(3), 323–341. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0195-9255(02)00102-6

Oo, K.T., & Thin, M.M.Z. (2022). Climate change perspective: The advantage and disadvantage of COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Sustainability and Environmental Management, 1(2), 275-291.

Oleribe, O.O., Crossey, M.M.E., & Taylor-Robinson, S.D. (2015). Sustainable health development goals (SHDG): Breaking down the walls. Pan African Medical Journal, 22, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.11604/PAMJ.2015.22.306.6468

Pouliotte, J., Smit, B., & Westerhoff, L. (2009). Adaptation and development: Livelihoods and climate change in Subarnabad, Bangladesh. Climate and Development, 1(1), 31–46. https://doi.org/10.3763/cdev.2009.0001

Prüss-Ustün, A., Wolf, J., Corvalán, C.F., Bos, R., & Neira, M.P. (2016). Preventing disease through healthy environments: a global assessment of the burden of disease from environmental risks. World Health Organization. https://doi.org/https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/204585

Rahman, M.S. (2013). Climate change, disaster and gender vulnerability: A study on two divisions of Bangladesh. American Journal of Human Ecology, 2(2), 72–82. https://doi.org/10.11634/216796221302315

Rylander, C., Odland, J. øyvind, & Sandanger, T.M. (2013). Climate change and the potential effects on maternal and pregnancy outcomes: An assessment of the most vulnerable - the mother, fetus, and newborn child. Global Health Action, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.3402/gha.v6i0.19538

Shahid, S. (2010). Probable impacts of climate change on public health in Bangladesh. Asia-Pacific Journal of Public Health, 22(3), 310–319. https://doi.org/10.1177/1010539509335499

Shahid, S., Wang, X.J., Harun, S. Bin, Shamsudin, S.B., Ismail, T., & Minhans, A. (2016). Climate variability and changes in the major cities of Bangladesh: observations, possible impacts and adaptation. Regional Environmental Change, 16(2), 459–471. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-015-0757-6

Shammi, M., Rahman, M.M., Bondad, S.E., & Bodrud-Doza, M. (2019). Impacts of salinity intrusion in community health: A review of experiences on drinking water sodium from coastal areas of bangladesh. Healthcare, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare7010050

Siddikur Rahman, M., Karamehic-Muratovic, A., Baghbanzadeh, M., Amrin, M., Zafar, S., Rahman, N.N., Shirina, S.U., & Haque, U. (2021). Climate change and dengue fever knowledge, attitudes and practices in Bangladesh: A social media-based cross-sectional survey. Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 115(1), 85–93. https://doi.org/10.1093/trstmh/traa093

Talukder, M.R.R., Rutherford, S., & Chu, C. (2015). Climate Change Impacts and Responses in Bangladesh. The International Journal of Climate Change: Impacts and Responses, 8(1), 21–32. https://doi.org/10.18848/1835-7156/CGP/v08i01/37260

Tariah, I.M.I., Abali, T.P., & Aminigbo, L.M.O. (2022). Impact of climate and land use changes on the livelihood of residents in calabar river basin, south-eastern Nigeria. Journal of Sustainability and Environmental Management, 1(2), 151-160.

Tong, S., & Ebi, K. (2019). Preventing and mitigating health risks of climate change. Environmental Research, 174, 9–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2019.04.012

Tong, S., Confalonier, U., Ebi, K., & Olsen, J. (2016). Managing and Mitigating the health risks of climate change : Calling for evidence-informed policy and action. Environmental Health Perspectives, 124(10), 176–180.

Vineis, P., Chan, Q., & Khan, A. (2011). Climate change impacts on water salinity and health. Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health, 1(1), 5–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jegh.2011.09.001

Yasmin, S. (2016). Impact of climate change on urban slum dwellers in Bangladesh: A case study of four selected slums in Dhaka City. Archives of Current Research International, 4(3), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.9734/acri/2016/26501.

© The Author(s) 2022. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license.