Climate Change and Pregnancy: Risks, Mitigation, Adaptation, and Resilience

Importance Climate change is affecting the earth, resulting in more extreme temperatures and weather, rising sea levels, more frequent natural disasters, and displacement of populations of plants and animals, including people and insects. These changes affect food and housing security, vector-borne illnesses, and access to clean air and water, all of which influence human health. Evidence and Results There are a number of adverse health outcomes linked to heat, air pollution from wildfires, stress from natural disasters, and other elements of climate change. Pregnant people are especially vulnerable to the health harms resulting from climate change, namely, preterm birth, small for gestational age, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, and other adverse reproductive health and birth outcomes. Strategies to minimize these harms include mitigation and adaptation. Conclusions and Relevance Physicians are in a unique position to protect the health of pregnant persons and children by advocating for policy changes that address climate change and providing clinical recommendations for patients to protect themselves from the health impacts of climate hazards. Target Audience Obstetricians and gynecologists, family physicians. Learning objectives After participating in this activity, physicians should be better able to describe the adverse health effects and pregnancy outcomes associated with elements of climate change; and identify strategies for patients to minimize the health harms from climate change, including mitigation, adaptations, and building resilience.