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Abstract: Public health adaptation to climate change is an important issue and inevitably is needed to address the adverse health impacts of climate change over the next few decades. This paper provides an overview of the constraints and barriers to public health adaptation and explores future research directions in this emerging field. An extensive literature review was conducted in 2010 and published literature from 2000 to 2010 was retrieved. This review shows that public health adaptation essentially can operate at two levels, namely, adaptive-capacity building and implementation of adaptation actions. However, there are constraints and barriers to public health adaptation arising from uncertainties of future climate and socioeconomic conditions, as well as financial, technologic, institutional, social capital, and individual cognitive limits. The opportunities for planning and implementing public health adaptation are reliant on effective strategies to overcome these constraints and barriers. It is proposed here that high research priority should be given to multidisciplinary research on the assessment of potential health impacts of climate change, projections of health impacts under different climate and socioeconomic scenarios, identification of health co-benefits of mitigation strategies, and evaluation of cost-effective public health adaptation options. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This study analyzed the geographical patterns of heat-related mortality among the population aged 65 and over within the metropolitan area of Sydney, Australia between 1993 and 2004, and evaluated the role of some physical and socio-demographic risk factors associated with it. The effect of temperature on all-cause mortality during unusually hot days was investigated using spatial analytic techniques, such as cluster analysis and spatial regression analysis. Generalized Linear Models (GLMs) were used to investigate the role of daily average temperature, ozone (O3) and particulate matter of diameter less than 10μm (PM10) at the regions that showed a significant increase in mortality on unusually hot days. Spatial variation in mortality on unusually hot days was observed among the population 65 and over. Elderly people living within 5–20km south-west and west of the Sydney Central Business District (CBD) were found to be more vulnerable. However, analysis using GLMs showed temperature to be a significant modifier of daily mortality in the region to the south-west of the CBD only. O3 and PM10 were found to be non-significant factors in the regions where air pollutants were studied. Socio-economic status and the proportion of vegetation or developed land in each Statistical Local Area (SLA) were also not a significant factor explaining the increased mortality. A combination of social and environmental factors may be at play. Our results suggest an effect of temperature on mortality of the elderly population in Sydney Statistical Division at the SLA level. More spatially-based research would be beneficial once climate datasets with improved spatial coverage become available. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: Reducing the retail availability of tobacco has been proposed as a component of tobacco endgame, yet it is not known whether retail availability has a direct impact on smoking behaviours. A narrative review and a meta-analysis have been undertaken to examine the density and proximity of tobacco retail outlets, but were limited in scope, exposure and outcome variables. The aim of this current study was to undertake a systematic review of the international literature on the density and proximity of tobacco retail outlets to homes, schools and communities and their association with smoking behaviours among youth.Methods: We reviewed and critically appraised the evidence documenting the association between density or proximity of tobacco retail outlets and smoking behaviours among school-age youth (18 and under), between 1 January 1990 and 21 October 2019. We reviewed original quantitative research that examined the associations of tobacco retail outlet density and proximity with individual smoking status or population-level smoking prevalence; initiation of smoking; frequency of tobacco use; sales to minors; purchasing by minors; susceptibility to smoking among non-smokers; perceived prevalence of smoking, and quitting behaviours.Findings: Thirty-five peer-reviewed papers met the inclusion criteria. This review provided evidence of a relationship between density of tobacco retail outlets and smoking behaviours, particularly for the density near youths' home. A study using activity spaces also found a significant positive association between exposure to tobacco retail outlets and daily tobacco use. The review did not provide evidence of an association between the proximity of tobacco retail outlets to homes or schools and smoking behaviours among youth.Conclusions: The existing evidence supports a positive association between tobacco retail outlet density and smoking behaviours among youth, particularly for the density near youths' home. This review provides evidence for the development and implementation of policies to reduce the density of tobacco retail outlets to reduce smoking prevalence among youth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]