Climate change could lead to more injuries and deaths
气候变化或导致更多伤亡
Injuries like drownings, and assaults could kill up to an additional 2,135 people each year in the US as climate change continues to cause unusual temperature swings. The findings by researchers from Imperial College London, Columbia, and Harvard were published today in the journal Nature Medicine. The connection between swings in temperature — unusual spells of heat or cold — and injuries still can't be explained, but researchers say that their estimates could help spur efforts to prevent those deaths.
气候变化导致温度波动异常,而溺水和袭击造成的伤害案件或导致美国每年新增2135人死亡。伦敦帝国理工学院,哥伦比亚大学和哈佛大学的研究人员于今日将研究结果发表在《自然医学》杂志上。温度的波动(异常的高温或低温)与受伤之间的联系尚无法解释,但研究人员表示,他们的预测或有助于刺激大家为预防此类伤亡而做出努力。
Looking at injuries associated with climate change has been a blind spot in research, authors of the study published today say. Previous studies have looked into how climate change could drive more deaths from things like heat illness or diseases spread by mosquitoes. Between 2030 and 2050, about 250,000 people could die each year because of malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea, and heat stress made worse by climate change, according to the World Health Organization.
研究作者表示,关于与气候变化相关的受伤事故调查一直都是研究盲点。先前的研究调查了气候变化导致因诸如热病或由蚊子传播的疾病而去世的人数增多的原因。世界卫生组织表示,2030至2050年间,每年将约有25万人死于因气候变化加剧导致的营养不良、疟疾、腹泻和中暑。
But 5 million people die from injuries across the globe each year, making up nearly one in ten of all deaths. Many of those injuries can be prevented, which is why the authors say they ought to be considered as part of efforts to better prepare for a future with potentially catastrophic climate change.
但全球每年有500万人因受伤离世,约占总死亡率的十分之一。此类受伤事故中,很多都是可预防的,因此研究作者认为应采取相应措施,以更好的应对未来可能发生的灾难性气候变化。
Some of the injuries they looked at are unintentional, including deaths from drownings, falls, and car accidents. The study also looked at intentionally inflicted injuries from assaults and suicide, which could point to how important it is to address mental health as people adapt to a changing planet. Another study found that suicide rates in the US and Mexico rose along with higher average monthly temperatures.
一部分的受伤事件都是无意行为,包括溺水、摔倒和交通事故造成的死亡。研究也关注了袭击和自杀造成的故意伤害,间接表明在面对气候变化时,解决心理健康十分重要。另一项研究发现:美国和墨西哥的自杀率随着每月平均气温的升高而上升。
"[The study] highlights how important mental health is as a hidden burden of not just climate change, but environmental exposures in general," Robbie Parks, a lead author of the study and postdoctoral research fellow at Columbia, tells The Verge. He believes there should be more research on mental health and rising temperatures. "Our results show that there may well be something there, particularly in younger people," Parks says.
该研究的主要作者、哥伦比亚大学的博士后研究员罗比·帕克斯(Robbie Parks)对The Verge杂志说道:“(这项研究)凸显了心理健康作为气候变化和环境暴露的隐性负担的重要性。”他认为应该就精神健康和气温上升的关系开展更多研究。帕克斯说道:“我们的结果表明两者之间存在一定联系,尤其是对于年轻人而言。”
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