UN warns super El Nino a ‘significant’ threat to world health

GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP)—El Nino represents a “significant” threat to global health, the United Nations warned on Tuesday, as the world braces for a cycle of the climate phenomenon predicted to be the most intense on record.

Tied to warming surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean, the natural weather pattern is linked to higher temperatures alongside periods of both extreme drought and widespread flooding, with its influence already being felt from central America to Indonesia.

According to the World Health Organization, periods of heavy rain could create favourable conditions for both cholera and disease-carrying insects, notably mosquitos, which would then lead to an uptick in illnesses such as malaria, chikungunya and dengue fever.