Critical Health Challenges: WHO Ex Chief Scientist Highlights Climate Change, Zoonotic Threats, And Dietary Risks In India

Former WHO Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan highlights the critical health challenges posed by climate change, zoonotic infections, and poor dietary habits in India.

Pic Credit: Freepik

Kochi: Highlighting major challenges to human health amid a series of issues, including climate change and anti-microbial resistance, Soumya Swaminathan, former Chief Scientist of the World Health Organisation (WHO), on Friday said that most of the emerging viral threats are zoonotic infections transmitted from animals to humans.  

She was speaking after the launch of various initiatives undertaken as part of a major research project on water quality assessment of Vembanad Lake and waterborne infectious diseases at ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI).

Swaminathan, who is also the former Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), emphasised the critical role of integrated research, including data from weather, climate, health, and environmental sources, to predict and prevent future outbreaks.

Most of the health threats today originate from environmental factors, she said and hence suggested establishing an Environmental Health Regulatory Agency in India. Swaminathan further pointed to dietary risks as the number one health threat in the country.

"Half of Indians cannot afford a nutritionally sufficient healthy diet," she added.

Kerala and Tamil Nadu are experiencing a concerning rise in obesity and non-communicable diseases, alongside persistent issues like malnutrition, anaemia, and micronutrient deficiencies, all stemming from unhealthy dietary habits, added the top scientist.

Emphasising the potential of marine resources as a healthy diet component to improve nutrition, she said: "We are yet to fully utilise these resources to address critical dietary issues.

She underscored the devastating impact of climate change, saying that India is one of the most vulnerable countries to this challenge.

"Almost the entire population of the country is being exposed to at least one of the climate hazards such as floods, droughts, cyclones, and extreme heat. Heat is most dangerous to both physical and mental health. The weakest section of the society bears the brunt of these hazards," she said.

"During COVID-19, I believe nobody anticipated the development of vaccines within a year. It was a remarkable achievement facilitated by unprecedented collaboration and data sharing among research institutions and scientists. During my time at the WHO, I witnessed first-hand this extraordinary level of networking and data sharing. Scientists prioritised the rapid dissemination of findings over individual publication which paid off ultimately," said Swaminathan.

Referring to the challenge of information flooding, she said that in the digital age, misinformation is fast spreading across social media platforms which can hinder scientific progress and public health efforts.

"This was evident during the COVID-19 pandemic when everybody disguised as ‘experts’ and offered advice to the people," she said.