Olivia Rosane is a staff writer for Common Dreams.
Biodiversity loss, the introduction of invasive species, the climate emergency , and chemical pollution all increase the risk of infectious disease, a first-of-its-kind analysis has found. The paper, published in Nature Wednesday, reviewed 972 studies and 2,938 observations on how human-driven environmental change had impacted the spread of disease, looking specifically at 1,497 host-parasite relationships.
'It could mean that by modifying the environment, we increase the risks of future pandemics,' study co-author Jason Rohr, a University of Notre Dame biology professor, told The Washington Post of the results.One way that the loss of species can increase disease is by eliminating rare species, Rohr explained to The New York Times. As parasites and pathogens tend to evolve to infect more common species, when these species are all that remain, the risk of infection goes up.
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