The climate crisis in clinical practice: Addressing air pollution, heat, and microplastics

Abstract

Climate change and environmental degradation are among the most pressing public health crises of our time, driving a wide range of health outcomes that disproportionately affect vulnerable populations. From air pollution to extreme heat, infectious diseases to microplastics, the threats are widespread, systemic, and growing. While planetary health encompasses many and multifaceted health impacts, this review will focus more specifically on three of the direct consequences of fossil fuels, namely air pollution, extreme heat as a result of global warming, and microplastics as a product of petrochemicals. As trusted professionals, physicians must be equipped to recognize, treat, and advocate against the environmental determinants of disease, both to improve patient outcomes and to foster systemic resilience.