A new Lancet Countdown Europe report, released on April 22, 2026, warns that climate change is increasingly harming health across Europe while political action and public awareness are failing to keep pace. The report says heat deaths have risen across nearly all monitored European regions, daily extreme heat warnings increased by 318% between 1991–2000 and 2015–2024, and higher temperatures are contributing to heat illness, chronic disease complications, and adverse birth outcomes. It also finds that climate change is worsening food insecurity and helping spread infectious diseases, with more than one million additional people affected by moderate or severe food insecurity in Europe in 2023 and the average risk of dengue outbreaks nearly quadrupling over the last decade.
Date: April 22, 2026. Source: euronews.com