For years scientists and physicians have been concerned with the issue of how weather and climate affect people. The fields of climate and health and weather and health are called bioclimatology and biometeorology, respectively. The difference between the two terms is in the treatment of time average quantities. Bioclimatology emphasizes a long-term influence, whereas biometeorology refers to an everyday, short-term influence.
The interrelationship between weather and health is so apparent that weather-health phrases are a common part of our vocabulary. Feeling “under the weather,” having “spring fever,” and those “dog days” of August are just several examples. The issues regarding climate and health are not only how climate does influence our health, but to what extent. Advances in the medical field are forcing physicians to look beyond the realm of traditional medicine in their diagnoses and treatment of illness and disease. Technological advances in weather instruments and computers...
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Further reading
McMichael A.J., Haines A., 1997. Global climate change: the potential effects on health. Brit Med J 315 (7111): 805–809.
Kunkel K.E., Pielke R.A., Changnon S.A., 1999. Temporal fluctuations in weather and climate extremes that cause economic and human health impacts: A review. B Am Meteorol Soc 80 (6): 1077–1098.
Russell R.C., 1998. Mosquito–borne arboviruses in Australia: the current scene and implications of climate change for human health. Int J Parasitol 28 (6): 955–969.
Patz J.A., Balbus J.M., 1996. Methods for assessing public health vulnerability to global climate change. Climate Res 6 (2): 113–125.
Kovats R.S., Haines A., Stanwell–Smith R., et al., 1999. Climate change and human health in Europe. Brit Med J 318 (7199): 1682–1685.
Haines A., McMichael A.J., 1997. Climate change and health: implications for research, monitoring, and policy. Brit Med J 315 (7112): 870–874.
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© 1987 Van Nostrand Reinhold
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Nicodemus, M.L., Hodge, W.T., Weiner, L.J. (1987). Health and climate . In: Climatology. Encyclopedia of Earth Science. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/0-387-30749-4_83
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