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Created 10 February 2016

Chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) including heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes and chronic lung disease account for some 7 out of every 10 deaths in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) including those of the Caribbean. This results in the expenditure of approximately 60% of health budgets in nearly all Caribbean countries. While it is easy to assume that the most common cause of NCDs are behavioural, such as exposure to tobacco smoke, unhealthy eating, physical inactivity and alcohol abuse, recognizing and understanding the connection between NCDs and environmental factors is critical, more so now than ever before.

Climate change is one of the greatest threats to a sustainable future. Globally, this has been acknowledged by 195 countries who signed the Paris Agreement on Climate Change at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC). This single act represents international recognition of the damaging effects of climate change and the unified commitment to curb emissions, strengthen resilience and take common action.

Regionally in the Caribbean and in other Small Island Developing States (SIDS), there is a higher level of vulnerability to climate change. For example, typically-limited physical size of SIDS effectively reduces adaptation options to climate change and sea level rise. Natural resources are limited and already heavily stressed by current unsustainable human activities. A high susceptibility to natural hazards have the potential to cause significant loss and damage to frequently underdeveloped infrastructure and struggling communities. The extreme openness of SIDS’ small economies are highly sensitive to external market shocks.

Most importantly, the impacts of climate change have the potential to worsen the NCD epidemic and frustrate efforts of Caribbean governments and other SIDS to meet global, regional and national NCD targets.

Source: http://www.caribbean360.com/news/reducing-non-communicable-disease-in-sids-through-climate-preservation