Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Hot on Facebook
Uproar After NC State Agent 'Fixes' Girl's Lunch Preschooler has to eat chicken nuggets instead of mom's meal »

Climate Killing Medical Hopes

UN conference highlights the dangers of fading biodiversity

By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff

Posted Apr 23, 2008 1:53 PM CDT

(Newser) – The loss of biodiversity on Earth will seriously hamper efforts to cure human disease, AFP reports. Researchers at the UN-backed Business for the Environment conference highlighted undiscovered cures for pain, infections and even cancer that risk being lost forever if humans fail to reverse the widespread extinction of thousands of species caused, in large part, by climate change.

While the past few centuries have focused on technical innovation, scientists are increasingly turning back to nature to cure disease. The solution is to "take our eyes off the economy," one scientist said. "Clean air, clean water, clean soil … and biodiversity. These are ultimately the most important needs that we have to fight for at all cost."

A car is seen on a road that crosses the dense Amazon rainforest near the northern city of Manaus, Brazil, Friday, Sept. 21, 2007.
A car is seen on a road that crosses the dense Amazon rainforest near the northern city of Manaus, Brazil, Friday, Sept. 21, 2007.   (AP Photo/Andre Penner)
Logged rainforest in Sumatra is seen in this undated file photo.
Logged rainforest in Sumatra is seen in this undated file photo.   (Getty Images)
PANAMA. 2004. Cana cloud forest. (NYC38821)
PANAMA. 2004. Cana cloud forest. (NYC38821)   (Magnum Photos)
A hummingbird is pictured at the newly open Rainforest Discovery Center in Gamboa, about 35 kilometers (22 miles) north of Panama City, Friday, Jan. 11, 2008.
A hummingbird is pictured at the newly open Rainforest Discovery Center in Gamboa, about 35 kilometers (22 miles) north of Panama City, Friday, Jan. 11, 2008.   (AP Photo/Arnulfo Franco)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
A snapshot of the day's best news stories.
 
COMMENTS
Be the first to comment on this story.

More Newser Stories

Greenhouse Gases Surging: US Report

Climate Change Makes Animals, People 'Shrink'

Starbucks: Coffee Faces Climate Risk

Gore to Launch 24-Hour Assault on Climate Skeptics

Coral Reefs Gone by Century's End


NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne