Floods and Diarrhea Risk in Young Children in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
Climate change is associated with more frequent and intense floods. Current research on the association between flood exposure and diarrhea risk is limited mainly to short-term and event-specific analyses. Moreover, how prior drought or water, sanitation, and hygiene (WaSH) practices influence this association remains largely unknown.
Published in JAMA Pediatrics, this multi-country cross-sectional study examining the association between flood exposure and diarrhea risk among young children in low- and middle-income countries. Historical flood events during 2009 through 2019 were obtained. The main outcome was diarrhea prevalence among children younger than 5 years. Study results suggest that floods, especially severe floods, long-duration floods, and floods preceded by drought, are associated with an increased risk of diarrhea among children younger than 5 years living in low- and middle-income countries. With the projected increasing frequency and intensity of floods and drought under climate change, greater collective efforts are needed to protect children’s health from these compounding events.
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