The impact of climate change on maternal-child health in Canada

Climate change is a fairly new phenomenon and its impact on health is poorly understood. Extreme weather events are becoming increasingly common, but the effect on vulnerable populations such as women and children is largely unknown. One particular problem that limits research on the impacts of extreme weather on health is the lack of indicators to help define extreme weather. Although research shows that heat waves defined as temperatures over 32 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days in Quebec can shorten the length of pregnancy, indicators to capture other types of climate stresses are lacking, including indicators for extreme precipitation or winter storms. Data on past weather patterns are available from Environment Canada, but they have yet to be used in research on perinatal health impacts of climate change in Quebec. This project aims to better understand the impact of climate change on maternal-child health by developing indicators (ie variables) to describe extreme weather in Quebec, Canada. This includes developing indicators to measure intense heat waves, precipitation, and severe winter storms that can be used for research on maternal-child health.

Faculty Supervisor:

Nathalie Auger

Student:

Xin Yan

Partner:

Discipline:

Medicine

Sector:

University:

Program:

Globalink