A new major research report indicates climate change is already causing thousands of deaths in Europe. According to The Lancet Countdown in Europe 2026 report, approximately 62,000 deaths in Europe were attributable to heat in 2024 alone. The report also found a 318 per cent increase in heat health warnings across Europe compared with the 1990s. Nearly all European regions experienced increased heat-related mortality between 2015 and 2024 compared to 1991-2000.
Climate change has prolonged the pollen season, significantly increasing the duration of exposure to allergens for millions, according to The Lancet Countdown in Europe 2026 report. Researchers observed an earlier start to the pollen season by one to two weeks for birch, alder, and olive pollen between 2015 and 2024, when compared with the period of 1991 to 2000. According to the report, hay fever sufferers are now enduring symptoms for up to two weeks longer than they did in the 1990s.
Hay fever impacts millions of people in the UK each year, according to Anne Biggs, deputy head of clinical services at Allergy UK. Biggs noted that while for some their symptoms can be mild, for many their hay fever symptoms impact their quality of life. The UK has some of the highest allergy rates globally, affecting 39 per cent of children and 30 per cent of adults, according to a separate allergy strategy backed by charities, patients, and doctors. Dr Samantha Walker, director of research and innovation at Asthma and Lung UK, said nearly half of people with asthma and more than a quarter of those surveyed with COPD experience symptoms triggered by pollen. Walker explained that if people are allergic to pollen, it can inflame their airways and cause terrifying breathing conditions, which can lead to life-threatening asthma attacks and COPD flare-ups.
Care and treatment for allergies are dramatically under-resourced within the NHS, according to the separate allergy strategy backed by charities, patients, and doctors. Anne Biggs emphasized that research and understanding into the timing and length of the different pollen seasons is vital to support clinicians to ensure treatment and management of allergic conditions can be optimised. Dr Samantha Walker warned that a longer pollen season will bring more misery for people with hay fever. Specific measures to address the under-resourced allergy care in the NHS have not been detailed in available reports. The exact number of thousands of deaths attributed to climate change according to the report mentioned by Sveriges Radio Nyheter remains unspecified beyond the 62,000 heat-related fatalities in 2024.