Tackling future health challenges has a powerful ally in technology

Advancing precision public health with tech to combat climate-related challenges.

Sustainability|Dec. 17, 2024

“It’s so bright and sunny!”. “Looks like it’s going to rain.”

Weather updates have long been a conversation-starter. Today, conversations about the weather are breaking the ice in more ways than one…

While Earth’s temperature warmed by 1.2°C over the last decade, it increased by 1.5°C between February 2023 and January 2024, making 2023 the hottest year on record.

But how do we understand climate change in the context of rising and more complex public health challenges?

The Person-Pathogen Interface

The impact of climate change on human health is far more nuanced than we realize— global warming influences over 50% of human pathogenic diseases, posing a complex web of health issues. Climatic hazards increase the interaction between pathogens and people. Heatwaves, wildfires, drought and floods disrupt habitats of vectors like mosquitoes, ticks, fleas, birds and mammals responsible for disease outbreaks, bringing them closer to people. Similarly, shifts in sea level, storms and floods cause human displacement, often increasing the displaced population’s proximity to vectors and microbes and their risk of contracting infectious diseases. Further, hazardous conditions like hurricanes may impair the ability to cope with illnesses, by compelling exposure to unsafe conditions, malnutrition, and elevated stress. On the other hand, climatic changes prove to be conducive to certain disease carriers, accelerating their life-cycle and enhancing their virulence. For example, heavy rains and floods induce stagnant water— a fertile breeding ground for mosquitoes and the pathogens that they transmit. Thus, climate change has a direct impact on public health.

As global warming continues to change our climate, the need to address these health issues has become the need of the hour. Technology is emerging as a powerful ally in our fight against this imminent threat. From sophisticated climate modeling algorithms to health trend analysis, digital tools are enabling more targeted and effective health interventions than ever before.

At the intersection of scientific innovation and public health lies a potent new approach: Precision Public Health (PPH). This emerging field harnesses cutting-edge technology and data analytics, empowering us to respond to health issues more efficiently, on a population level.

Data in action

Imagine if we could preempt disease outbreaks with the same accuracy as that of weather forecasts. it's the promise of PPH in action.

Central to PPH strategies is the integration of diverse streams of data, including environmental and climatic information, social factors and genomics— the study of a person’s genes, and how they interact with one another as well as with the environment. Health officials can use advanced digital tools to build robust datasets and analyze patterns of disease spread. This makes it possible to anticipate where an outbreak might occur next and take preemptive action to augment public health operations.

In the realm of infectious disease control, PPH enables a shift to "precision epidemiology". This approach uses genomic technologies and big data analytics to control infectious diseases at both individual and community levels. Such tools could capture early-warning signs of disease outbreaks, expediting the response to climate-sensitive health threats. Consider how this might work for vector-borne diseases like malaria or dengue. Studying the distribution of temperature, rainfall, and mosquito populations in conjunction with people’s health records, is what we need to tackle challenges of this scale. Similarly, if an increased risk of waterborne diseases is predicted in coastal regions prone to monsoon flooding, diagnostic tools can be deployed for timely testing, and local health authorities may be alerted to  ensure availability of necessary medications.

Banking a Wealth of Data to Enrich Public Health

Biosensors, remote monitoring innovations and wearable devices play a crucial role in the PPH ecosystem. This wealth of information can be banked for further research and advancement. As these repositories expand, they can contribute to national databases, to provide a comprehensive picture of health parameters across demographic segments. For instance, insights from wearables could help identify precursors of heat stress in vulnerable populations during extreme weather events. This knowledge rests at the core of designing interventions that can be implemented at scale.

As we look to the future, emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, advanced data analytics, and innovative medical devices may well be the key to not just surviving but thriving in the face of climate change.  Harnessing the full potential of scientific innovations, evolving approaches like Precision Public Health aim to future-proof wellbeing with preventive, personalized and patient-centered measures.

Disclaimer: The information mentioned in this document is only suggestive /for patient education and shall not be considered as a substitute for doctor’s advice or recommendations from Abbott. Please consult your doctor for more information.