Climate change is bad for mental health, says science

The United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has released a Climate Report that has revealed a number of eye-opening stats (to say the least) but most earth-shattering to us is that the report found that with rising temperatures comes a rise in mental illness.

Mental health is already the top reason Australians go to the doctor, with one in five Australians experiencing a mental health condition, and it is expected that almost half of all Australians will experience mental illness in their lifetime. So what can we do? 

"The most important point of this [new] study is that climate change, indeed, is affecting mental health, and certain populations—women and the poor—are disproportionally impacted,"said Jonathan Patz, professor and director of the Global Health Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Although the connection exists, science is yet to understand exactly why.

Rising temperatures are the result of a magnitude of problems (aeroplanes, urbanisation of cities, increased population or maybe the 100 companies that are responsible for 71% of all global emissions) that most of us have little to no control over but this doesn't mean we can't help make a difference. 

As individuals, every eco-friendly move we take makes a difference. If it is swapping your takeaway coffee cup to dine in or refilling your water bottle we can't stress how much every little bit makes a difference. If we all band together we can make a change.