Pediatricians should be more concerned about how climate change could affect children, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
Intense heat waves, extreme weather changes and other effects of climate change could leave children at greater risk for illness, said the organization. This risk is especially high for infants and youths playing outdoors.
"Every child need a safe and healthy environment and climate change is a rising public health threat to all children in this country and around the world," said AAP President Dr. Sandra G. Hassink in a policy statement.
The statement encouraged pediatricians to collaborate with politicians to protect their patients from climate change related dangers such as natural disasters, pollution, heat stress and threats to water and food supplies.
Dr. Samantha Ahdoot, assistant professor of pediatrics at Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine and the statement's lead author, said that protecting children from climate change is necessary because they are the ones most vulnerable to its negative effects.
"Children are uniquely at risk to the direct impacts of climate changes ... where they are exposed to increased risk of injury, death, loss of or separation from caregivers and mental health consequences," Ahdoot explained.
The AAP also released a report to support the group's statement, which was also published in the Pediatrics journal, on Monday, which contained scientific evidence to back up claims on climate change being linked to issues of pediatric health, growth and development.
Evidence also proved that climate change have positive influence on numerous infectious diseases like malaria, dengue fever, Lyme disease and the West Nile virus that could be dangerous to children and children with weak immune systems.
The AAP statement then included recommendations on how to ensure child health and safety against climate change such as establishing a broader coalition across all departments concerned with climate change, education campaigns to promote public awareness, promotion of use of renewable energy sources and resource efficiency, and funding public transportation systems.
The report concluded that pediatricians have an important role to play in this movement as health and patient advocates.
Hassink added that pediatricians are in the unique position of influence in this matter due to their knowledge of child health and disease and because of their role in protecting the well-being of current and future children.
