Climate change accelerates global rise in antimicrobial resistance, experts warn

Wednesday 01 - 16:54

By: Azzat Manal

Climate change accelerates global rise in antimicrobial resistance, experts warn

Experts are warning that climate change is increasingly acting as a powerful driver of antimicrobial resistance, one of the fastest-growing threats to global public health.

New scientific findings suggest that rising temperatures and shifting rainfall patterns are accelerating the evolution and spread of drug-resistant bacteria, particularly salmonella, a common cause of foodborne illness worldwide.

Antimicrobial resistance already causes more than one million deaths annually, according to global estimates, and affects all countries and age groups. Scientists now argue that environmental changes linked to climate change are worsening the crisis.

A large international study involving researchers from the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Switzerland and China, and published in The Lancet Planetary Health, found a strong correlation between climate change indicators and the increase in antibiotic-resistant genes in salmonella bacteria.

The research analyzed genomic data from more than 480,000 bacterial samples collected across 139 countries between 1940 and 2023. It found that 82% of countries experienced an increase in resistance-related genes over time.

According to the study, global climate shifts were associated with an average 10% rise in antimicrobial resistance genes in salmonella during the study period, with the strongest increases observed in the Middle East and North Africa, followed by South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.

Researchers explained that higher temperatures and changing precipitation patterns can alter bacterial survival conditions, enhance mutation rates, and increase the exchange of resistance genes between microorganisms. These changes contribute to faster adaptation of bacteria to existing antibiotics.

While scientists emphasize that misuse and overuse of antibiotics remain the primary cause of resistance, they stress that climate change is now acting as a significant amplifying factor.

Public health experts warn that antimicrobial resistance is becoming a systemic global risk, requiring urgent coordinated action. They call for integrating climate mitigation strategies with stronger antibiotic stewardship and improved disease monitoring under the “One Health” approach, which links human, animal, and environmental health.

Researchers conclude that combining efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with responsible antibiotic use could help slow the spread of resistance genes and reduce the long-term global health threat posed by drug-resistant infections.