University of California – Davis. (2022, August 5). Air pollution, including during wildfires, shows ill effects in children: Markers for inflammation, cardiac regulation. ScienceDaily. Retrieved January 29, 2023 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/08/220805091228.htm 

 

Children in Sacramento have been studied for inflammation regarding air pollutants. This inflammation has been linked to exposure of excessive wildfires in California due to climate change. In accordance to UC Davis researchers, “As climate change continues to impact children and families, it is paramount to understand the impact of environmental contaminants such as air pollution on children’s physiology.” These researchers claim that in the upcoming decades, if children are still exposed to this type of prevalence of wildfires, they could develop detrimental and lifelong diseases along the lines of cardiac anomalies or neurodevelopmental disorders. Long-term research has not been conducted yet, but it is expected that more and more kids will suffer the effects of rapid climate change, due to the lack of control and regulation put in place to limit its spread and effect on wildfires.

 

I think that it is absolutely necessary to create environmental regulation when it comes to protecting children. The negative effects of climate change doesn’t just affect our environment, but also our people. This is evident in the fact that children are suffering respiratory, cardiac, and neurological damage to something that can be minimized via human intervention. With the data provided in this study, I believe that more change will be made in terms of regulating notorious California wildfires. These wildfires are extended and more prevalent due to climate change, as it perpetuates hot weather and dry brush–a perfect mix for fires to thrive in. If more regulation was made to both prevent climate change from occurring and wildfires from spreading, children would not be affected as much.