Spread of Disease

One traumatic effect of global warming, I believe, is the spread of disease.  As northern countries become warmer, disease-carrying insects are migrating north.  These insects travel bearing disease, plague, bacteria and viruses. Diseases carried by rodents and other mammals may also be impacted by climate change.  This will significantly cause harm to a wide variety of species, such as humans and animals.  The thousands of birds wiped out in Hawaii, has seemed to be caused by climate change, which contributed to this epidemic of avian malaria. Researchers state that humans are also in danger of malaria, as well as dengue and yellow fever.  As milder winters permit the survival of more and more mosquitoes, cases of malaria and yellow fever will become more and more common.  As the Earth warms up, bird flu is another example of a disease that is likely to spread.  Global warming has contributed to a dramatic loss of wetlands throughout the world.  This trend is causing birds to migrate north.  Instead of using wetlands as their stopping points, they land on animal farms where they interact with domestic poultry.  This is risking the spread of disease via animal-to-human and human-to-human contact.  The spread of insect-borne disease has also been a cause of the distemper in African lions.  Coral reefs have been bleached from the attack of diseases, which continue to spread from the warming seas. 

Works Cited 

"Diseases Spread as Climate Changes." Fight Global Warming - Environmental Defense Fund. Web. 22 Oct. 2010. <http://www.fightglobalwarming.com/page.cfm?tagID=243>. 

"Global Warming May Spread Diseases - CBS News." Breaking News Headlines: Business, Entertainment & World News - CBS News. Web. 22 Oct. 2010. <http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/06/20/tech/main512920.shtml>. 

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Imperative, By Reproductive. "Global Warming and the Spread of Disease." Buzzle Web Portal: Intelligent Life on the Web. Web. 22 Oct. 2010. <http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/9-5-2006-107708.asp>. 

"John Roy - Abenaza - Blog » Blog Archive » Global Warming." John Roy - Abenaza - Blog. Web. 22 Oct. 2010. <http://jroy.abenaza.com/2008/04/23/global-warming/>. 

Kid.Ouch, By A. "5 Deadliest Effects of Global Warming." Popular | Environmental Graffiti. Web. 22 Oct. 2010. <http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/sciencetech/5-deadliest-effects-of-global-warming/276>.