Climate Change and Oral Health

Abstract

The effects of climate change on human health, including oral health, are detectable, now making this an acute and present situation. In 2015, global mean surface air temperature (SAT) reached 1°C above pre-industrial levels1 and is predicted to increase rapidly to 1.5°C by about the 2030s and reach 2°C by the 2050s. This rate of global warming and increased global mean SAT are associated with higher risks of adverse health outcomes  that are measurable today.

The recent Climate change and Clinical Practice conference aimed to demonstrate clinical implications of climate change on human health, to suggest schemes that boost clinical practice resilience in the face of climate-related events, and to urge engagement of health professionals in the climate crisis discussion. Similarly, oral healthcare providers must strategise for clinical practice resilience and consider clinical manifestations of climate change in their dental patients.