Climate pains

Regular readers of Flow already know that a warming climate could make it harder for penguins to mate and bar patrons to find a cheap pint. But if these climate change pains seem a little too distant to make you cringe, try this one: a warming climate could also increase the risk of kidney stones.

As The Globe and Mail explains, hotter temperatures have much the same effect in the human body that they do on lakes, drying up the water and leaving salt and mineral deposits behind. In a human body, the results are painful blockages whose occurrence already corresponds to warmer climates, like those in the southern United States. And while a lake’s dried minerals can simply sit on its shores, yours would have to be excreted through your urethra, or an incision made by a surgeon.

According to the University of Texas study cited by the article, global warming could extend the so-called American “stone belt”, adding $1 billion in annual health costs.

But it won’t just kidney stones paining the world.

The World Health Organization (WHO) suggests that global warming was responsible for over 600,000 deaths in the 1990s and 150,000 in 2000 alone. Increasing incidences of heat waves, water-borne diseases brought on by unpredictable precipitation and diseases spreading to regions in which they couldn’t previously survive are all potential consequences of a warmer climate. In short, climate change affects the balance of the places we live, which has consequences on the balance of our own bodies.

When it comes to the “ouch” factor, though, it’s hard to argue with jagged points as potent as a kidney stone and your urethra. If passing one isn’t enough to make you consider your energy use, you’re made of stern stuff indeed.