Our planet and our health are interrelated. For our health and well-being, we need access to clean
water, clean air, nutritious food, and an environment that facilitates our mental and physical wellbeing. And we expect this in our planet to which we never paid enough attention.
Our actions are depleting and polluting our natural resources, creating a crisis that threatens our health and is very existence. The impact of climate change, floods, forest fires, droughts, and intense rainfall rise in temperature are causing huge suffering displacing and killing people, and impacting their health and livelihood.
Outbreaks of infectious diseases, traumas, injuries, heat-strokes, malnutrition, and undernutrition resulting in food shortages due to crop failure are also related to climate change. Today climate change has emerged as the single biggest threat.
Our ever-expanding unplanned cities and habitation areas, changing habits, and unhealthy lifestyles are contributing to the growing numbers of people affected by life-threatening and debilitating diseases such as diabetes, heart ailments, respiratory illness, obesity, and road traffic injuries to name a few. Every year 13 million lives are lost globally due to avoidable environmental causes.
Air pollution alone causes 2.5 million deaths in our region every year, 9.2 million people die from noncommunicable diseases every year. These unfortunate deaths and sufferings also speak of the pressure and the state of our health systems. The ongoing pandemic has exposed this inequitable and unsustainable system in which we exist. The pandemic has also provided an opportunity to build back better and greener.
We must act now for our planet and our health. Protect ad preserve nature, promote afforestation, improve air quality, stop polluting agricultural practices, promote sustainable farming, protect drinking water supplies, build climate-resilient and environmentally sustainable facilities, and ensure water and sanitation are integral to primary health care services which are accessible to all, ensure quick and healthy energy transition, rigorously enforce air quality standards, increase investment in public transport infrastructure, promote healthy and sustainable food systems.
Build healthy, livable cities with green and healthy spaces that promote physical activity and promote cleaner fuel for cooking. On world health day, WHO is calling on one and all to act
together, to protect our health and our planet for a healthier tomorrow.
As responsible citizens of this planet, let’s invest more of our time towards
nature. It’ll be a better option to plant more trees while you are on a break from work to ease up
your mind or volunteer in multiple NGOs to experience teamwork and fun time with your friends
while you are also saving the planet. We all must include little things to do for a sustainable
environment in our daily schedule. Now is the time to take up the call for our health and future.
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