First Check > Search results for 'climate change'
Climate change
14
Sep
  • # Tags

Climate change trumps political uncertainty in priorities for global executives: report

  • First Check Team / 1 month
  • 0
  • 2 min read

85% of executives increased their investments in sustainability so far this year, up from 75% in 2023 Climate change remains a top priority for global C-suite executives, surpassing concerns such as political uncertainty, talent competition, and evolving regulatory environments, a new Deloitte report has revealed.  The report highlighted that 85% of executives have increased their […]

lung cancer
23
Jul
  • # Tags

The impact of climate change on lung cancer in Asia: The Lancet

  • First Check Team / 3 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Environmental and lifestyle factors lead to early onset of lung cancer. In India, lung cancer typically manifests about a decade earlier than in Western countries. The intersection of climate change and lung cancer in Asia presents an urgent and complex public health challenge that demands urgent action. As climate change continues to amplify the burden […]

Climate change
06
Jun
  • # Tags

Climate change poses significant health challenges for kids, elders, pregnant women: Study

  • First Check Team / 4 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Nearly 2,50,000 additional deaths per year are estimated from malnutrition, malaria, diarrhoea, and heat stress due to climate change between 2030 and 2050. As 2023 was the warmest year on record in over 170 years, with numerous climate emergencies like wildfires, cyclones, flooding, and extreme heat, serious health complications are arising for pregnant women, newborns, […]

climate change
09
Feb
  • # Tags

Fact-check: Meatless diet can help fight climate change

  • Deepika Khurana / 8 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

About 15% of global greenhouse emissions result from livestock farming, nearly equivalent to those generated by the transportation sector. Is it healthier for the planet if humans stop consuming meat? That’s the question a reader asked First Check. After going through the scientific evidence – there’s a lot of promising research happening in this area […]

winters
19
Jan
  • # Tags

Climate change: Warm winters set new temperature records globally

  • Riyaz Wani / 9 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Disruption of winter upsets a series of vital environmental processes that nourish life on earth.  Kashmir Valley, one of India’s coldest places, is witnessing an unusually warm winter with day temperature hovering over 15 degrees Celsius, at par with the capital city, New Delhi. In the middle of winter, spring is in the air. Trees […]

Climate change
04
Jan
  • # Tags

Climate change debate: putting health first

  • Riyaz Wani / 10 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Despite the enormous global attention being paid to climate change, its fallout on health is only now being recognised Recent studies on climate change have painted a very grim picture of its immediate and long-term fallout on health. The trend has been exacerbated over the last few years during which extreme weather events have caused […]

dengue cases
08
Dec
  • # Tags

Explainer: How climate change causes a surge in dengue cases

  • Florica Brahma / 10 months
  • 0
  • 2 min read

The transmission of dengue is intricately linked to three pivotal factors, namely, rainfall, humidity, and temperature, which can create an optimal environment for the multiplication of mosquitoes carrying the disease. As the dengue cases continue to surge, the association between climate change and the dynamics of pathogen-vector and host relationships is hard to ignore. There […]

02
Nov
  • # Tags

What The Fact – India blames women for climate change woes

  • Varadarajan Ananthakrishnan / 3 years
  • 0
  • 3 min read

There is a sizeable section that peddles misinformation, mis-attributes natural calamities to everything but climate change, and spreads canards about menstruating and jeans-wearing women as being the cause of disasters.

climate
16
Dec
  • # Tags

Exodus from Sundarbans: India’s climate refugees need help

  • Sadia Azim / 10 months
  • 0
  • 6 min read

The sea-level rise, frequent cyclonic storms, and disappearing islands of the Sundarban delta are creating climate refugees in large numbers. India must acknowledge them for the climate action plan before it gets late. Twenty-five-year-old Sumit Pramanik is a mechanical engineer working five days a week in Kolkata, India. Every Friday evening, he packs his bag […]

mental health
12
Dec
  • # Tags

The mental health fallout of climate carnage

  • Riyaz Wani / 10 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Mental health issues could become widespread as climate change threatens to worsen and extreme weather events become more frequent, upending people’s lives Many people consider autumn to be one of the best seasons of the year. It is a delight to watch the leaves turn yellow and temperatures mellow down. In some regions, cicada courtship […]

Climate Depression
11
Dec
  • # Tags

Pandemic of Climate Depression

  • Riyaz Wani / 10 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

The growing levels of anxiety connected to climate change were attempted to be quantified in research published in 2021 by The Lancet. It was found that 84 percent of the young people polled were “moderately worried” about climate change, while 59 percent of them were “extremely worried.” More than half of the respondents claimed to have felt depressed, nervous, angry, guilty, or helpless as a result of climate change, and 45 percent said that their concern over it had a detrimental influence on their everyday life.

climate change
04
Dec
  • # Tags

Climate discourse taking centre stage

  • Riyaz Wani / 11 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

While growing scientific evidence has raised the climate consciousness in the world, politics has also played a distinct role Over the last two years, climate change seems to have got much wider political and media attention around the world. It is apparent from the increasing frequency of statements on the phenomenon from world leaders and […]

Climate Change
16
Nov
  • # Tags

370% rise in heat-related deaths by 2050 if climate goals unmet: The Lancet report

  • First Check Team / 11 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

The 2023 report of the Lancet Countdown on health and climate change highlights how the health of humanity is at grave risk. The 2023 report of the ‘Lancet Countdown on health and climate change: the imperative for a health-centred response in a world facing irreversible harms’, released earlier this week, provides a disturbing glimpse of […]

03
Jan
  • # Tags

Social media listening crucial for tackling infodemic’s impact on health: Study

  • First Check Team / 10 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

There is growing evidence of the impact of the infodemic on non-communicable diseases, climate change, vaccine acceptance, and mental health, among many other health concerns. A recent study says that social listening and integrated analysis to generate infodemic insights are the first step in managing the infodemic.

04
Oct
  • # Tags

WHO launches global plan to tackle dengue as cases surge over 12.3 million this

  • First Check Team / 2 weeks
  • 0
  • 3 min read

As dengue cases surge across all six World Health Organization regions, with an estimated four billion people at risk globally, the WHO on Thursday launched the Global Strategic Preparedness, Readiness and Response Plan (SPRP) to tackle dengue and other Aedes-borne arboviruses Aedes is the scientific name of the mosquito that can transmit dengue, chikungunya, Zika, […]

17
Sep
  • # Tags

Adults over 60 are the fastest-growing demographic across the world

  • First Check Team / 4 weeks
  • 0
  • 2 min read

A World Bank report says demographic transformations are reshaping the world, with the global population expected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050     Adults over 60 are the fastest-growing demographic across the world, says the new World Bank’s report.   The report says demographic transformations are reshaping the world, with the global population expected […]

cholera
05
Sep
  • # Tags

Rising cholera outbreaks: Afghanistan and Bangladesh top the list in Asia

  • Riyaz Wani / 1 month
  • 0
  • 3 min read

The report says the number of reported cholera cases increased by 13% and deaths by 71% in 2023 compared to 2022   Conflict, climate change, limited investment in development and population displacement due to emerging and re-emerging risks all contributed to the rise in the number of cholera outbreaks, the World Health Organization (WHO) says […]

global public health
19
Jul
  • # Tags

Addressing the threat to global public health

  • First Check Team / 3 months
  • 0
  • 2 min read

Experts consider the impact of upcoming US election results and the role of social media platforms in the dissemination of health information.  As the presidential election approaches in the United States, experts underscore how the results will impact the health and human rights of millions of people across the globe. A recent article in Health and […]

amoebic meningoencephalitis
08
Jul
  • # Tags

Explainer: Why amoebic meningoencephalitis deaths in Kerala are disconcerting

  • Pallav Vyas / 3 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

This could be a result of climate change, since rising air temperatures lead to a rise in water temperatures, which are the breeding grounds for Naegleria fowleri.   The news of three deaths in the last two months in the southern state of Kerala, due to amoebic meningoencephalitis, a rare infection, is causing much apprehension among […]

mystery fever
19
Jun
  • # Tags

Explainer: Why typhoid fever is so hard to beat

  • Pallav Vyas / 4 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Access to clean drinking water, hygienic food, and typhoid vaccination are the best preventive measures. As urbanisation and climate change continue to add to the global burden of typhoid, the growing incidence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) makes it all the more challenging to contain the spread of this life-threatening infection. Prevalent in many countries in […]

stroke
11
Jun
  • # Tags

High night-time temperatures increase stroke risk in older women: Study

  • First Check Team / 4 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Researchers from Helmholtz Munich and the Augsburg University Hospital in Germany found that the risk of stroke among older women is seven per cent higher on warm nights. As the march of climate change continues, notwithstanding the many climate accords aimed at arresting the progress of global warming, a recent study has added to the […]

Jisha Krishnan
05
Jun
  • # Tags

First Check Diaries by Jisha Krishnan

  • Jisha Krishnan / 4 months
  • 0
  • 2 min read

As the results of the world’s largest democratic elections unfolded yesterday, four words echoed everywhere. Those who supported the victors, those who sympathised with the other contenders, just about everyone I know, said the same thing – I told you so! “The four most beautiful words in our common language,” as American writer Gore Vidal […]

breastfeeding
05
Jun
  • # Tags

World Environment Day: Invest in breastfeeding for a sustainable world

  • Allen Joe Mathew  / 4 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Feeding a baby with formula for the first six months of life can result in the emission of a quarter tonne of greenhouse gases, note public health researchers.  Have you ever thought of breastfeeding as a sustainable food source? Can it serve as a carbon offset for the formula milk industry? A group of public […]

hot
30
May
  • # Tags

When summers become too hot to handle

  • Riyaz Wani / 5 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

From India to Bangladesh and Myanmar to Thailand, the relentless heat has disrupted daily life, claimed lives, and exacerbated existing socio-economic challenges. Indian actor Shah Rukh Khan’s recent hospitalisation due to heat stroke has brought much deserved attention to the severity of the heatwaves sweeping across India and the broader South Asian region. While Khan […]

West Nile Virus
21
May
  • # Tags

Explainer: The spread of West Nile Virus

  • Pallav Vyas / 5 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Most infections are asymptomatic, while some manifest as moderate fever, or severe fever. No vaccine against WNV is available yet for humans. As cases of West Nile Virus (WNV) rise in the Indian state of Kerala, neighbouring regions are on high alert. While the situation is still evolving and could cause a public health concern, […]

Onions
13
May
  • # Tags

Fact-check: Onions won’t help you beat the summer heat

  • Allen Joe Mathew  / 5 months
  • 0
  • 2 min read

A recent video of an Indian politician talking to the media during the ongoing election campaigns has been in the news for the dubious health claim.  If an Indian politician is to be believed, the best way to cope with the scorching weather conditions is to carry an onion in your pocket! A recent video […]

avian flu
06
May
  • # Tags

Explainer: Can humans get avian flu?

  • Pallav Vyas / 5 months
  • 0
  • 2 min read

The extremely rare event of the virus mutating such that it is able to invade human bodies, could result in a public health emergency. Globally, cases of bird flu, also referred to as avian flu, are on the rise. There’s fear that this corroborates the predictions of health scientists that the future pandemic is likely […]

health disinformation
26
Mar
  • # Tags

Decoding health disinformation during elections

  • Riyaz Wani / 7 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

In a year when the world’s oldest and the largest democracies are going to polls, AI-generated fake news is expected to be all over the place.  Does health mis/disinformation increase or decrease during elections? Very little is known about this phenomenon. It is, however, scientifically proven that political fake news becomes rife during polls.  According […]

misinformation, disinformation
21
Mar
  • # Tags

US launches Foreign Ministry Channel for Health Security to counter health misinformation, disinformation

  • First Check Team / 7 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Climate change, growing regional instability, the rise of misinformation and disinformation increase the complexity of preventing and responding to the next pandemic. The United States has launched Foreign Ministry Channel (FMC) for Health Security, making health security a foreign policy priority, and effectively addressing health-related misinformation and disinformation. This comes with the recognition that the […]

global pandemic
06
Feb
  • # Tags

Conspiracy theories major obstacle to new global pandemic treaty: WHO

  • First Check Team / 8 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Despite lessons that should have been learned during COVID-19, the world is unprepared for the next pandemic, be it an influenza virus, another coronavirus, or “Disease X.” A new global pandemic treaty is in the works. The motive of the treaty is to prepare the world for the next pandemic, be it an influenza virus, […]

Jisha Krishnan
31
Jan
  • # Tags

First Check Diaries by Jisha Krishnan

  • Jisha Krishnan / 9 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

How do you like your coffee? With butter? And some oil? Apparently, bulletproof coffee is what the celebs are having – instead of breakfast – to shed some superfluous body weight. Not surprisingly, social media buffs are in love with the magic potion. There’s a “small” problem though – the fad diet can actually harm […]

veganism
04
Aug
  • # Tags

Fact-check: Debunking 3 myths about veganism

  • Florica Brahma / 1 year
  • 0
  • 2 min read

Proteins are not only found in meat and dairy products, but also in plant-based diets. As the world continues to tackle the growing challenges of climate change and global warming, veganism has emerged as a popular lifestyle choice. However, there are many misconceptions that prevail regarding vegan food choices. Here is a look at some […]

16
Oct
  • # Tags

At current rate, ending poverty for half the world could take over a century

  • First Check Team / 4 hours
  • 0
  • 3 min read

  At today’s feeble pace, it could take more than a century to eliminate poverty as it is defined for nearly half the world – people who live on less than $6.85 per day, according to the World Bank’s new Poverty, Prosperity, and Planet Report.    The report released in Washington on Tuesday offers the […]

09
Dec
  • # Tags

Decarbonizing our lives

  • Riyaz Wani / 10 months
  • 0
  • 3 min read

Our energy-intensive lifestyles are sending billions of tons of yearly emissions into the atmosphere When Thomas Hardy wrote his pastoral Far From the Madding Crowd in 1874, the industrial revolution that had begun in England a century ago was looming over country life. The novel was thus a nostalgic throwback to a way of life […]

24
Feb
  • # Tags

The Last of Us: Can fungi cause a global pandemic?

  • Toibah Kirmani / 2 years
  • 0
  • 3 min read

What if a parasitic fungus became a threat to humankind’s survival? That is the scary premise of ‘The Last of Us’, a popular American post-apocalyptic drama television series on HBO. But is there any science behind this fiction?