Potential Effects on Human Health Global warming could have significant consequences for human health, from a higher incidence of heat stress and a worsening of air quality to an increase in potential infectious diseases. He believes it is up to physicians to be aware of illnesses that might be caused by changes in climate. Many people are unaware of the impacts that a change in climate may be affecting them even today. Most of the expected drastic changes in climate may not occur in our lifetimes, but people must realize that some of the minor changes that are occurring are having a noticeable impact on our lives today. Definitions of weather, climate and climate change and the greenhouse effect are necessary before continuing this discussion.
Weather is the state of the atmosphere at any particular moment in time.
It can and will vary from moment to moment. Climate is often described as the average or usual weather an area experiences over a period of time a month, a season, a year, or many years. An accurate definition of climate, however, must also include the total weather of an area over a period of time. That is, it must allow for the consideration of the characteristic variability of weather and its extremes, with the inclusion of data about reliability and frequency. If, for example, global average temperature were to rise, but the variability did not change, the frequency of heat waves might increase and climate change would be noted.