A group of Maine doctors, gathered in Portland today, say climate change is worsening some diseases and encouraging the spread of insect-borne illnesses.
Climate change may have been the realm of environmentalists, but doctors are tackling the issue too.
About 50 Maine doctors met in Portland this morning to discuss how global warming is exacerbating allergies and asthma, and encouraging the spread of insect-borne Lyme disease and Triple E.
Leading discussions was Dr. Paul Epstein of the Center for Health and Global Environment at Harvard Medical School. He says the health impact of climate change is hard to ignore. "It's being seen in all clinicians' offices, and so the awareness is being based on the emerging trends of more health-related impacts of climate change."
Doctors at the workshop said that they and their counterparts must do more to speak out on climate change and educate patients.
