Amid global discussions about melting ice caps and rising seas, a quieter but pressing crisis is unfolding—climate change is significantly affecting women’s health, transforming an environmental challenge into a public health emergency. With every heatwave and storm, women face escalating risks, bearing the brunt of a crisis that already impacts their lives in profound ways.

Warming temperatures are expanding habitats for disease carriers, increasing women’s vulnerability to vector-borne illnesses like malaria and dengue, particularly in regions with overstretched healthcare systems. Disruptions caused by climate-induced damage to infrastructure and resource shortages also limit women’s access to essential healthcare, including maternal and reproductive services. Nutritional deficiencies, exacerbated by destabilized food systems, further jeopardize women’s health, especially in developing nations where they disproportionately shoulder the burden of malnutrition.

Rising temperatures contribute to heat-related illnesses, while extreme weather events such as floods and droughts heighten pregnancy and childbirth risks, complicating access to critical care. Beyond physical health, the psychological toll of displacement, loss of livelihoods, and heightened responsibilities during climate disasters often goes unnoticed. Additionally, women, who are heavily represented in climate-sensitive sectors like agriculture, face severe economic challenges with each disaster.

Gender-based violence, another harrowing consequence of the climate crisis, further endangers women. Governments must act urgently to integrate women’s health into climate policies, ensuring access to healthcare, safeguarding economic stability, and addressing gender-based violence. Climate justice cannot be achieved without gender justice. Immediate action is necessary to protect women’s health in the face of an increasingly unstable climate.

TANIA SHAHJAHAN,

Sindh.