Heat waves, wildfires: Here's how climate change is affecting Canadians' health

Rising temperatures and increasing exposure to wildfires are threatening the health of Canadians, according to a global report outlining the growing risks of climate change.

The Lancet Countdown’s sixth annual report on health and climate change, published in The Lancet journal on Wednesday, tracked 44 indicators of health impacts that are directly linked to climate change to show that key trends are getting worse and exacerbating existing health and social inequities.

In Canada, there has been increased exposure to heat waves and wildfires in the past few years when compared to earlier periods.

“We’re seeing that all of the indicators that track health impacts of climate change are flashing red,” Dr. Marina Romanello, research director of the Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change and the study’s lead author, told CTVNews.ca during a telephone interview from London on Wednesday.

“They’re all showing that the health impacts of climate change are increasing really rapidly and we're running out of time to do something about this.”