Will there be a new pandemic?
Yes.
Over the past 30 years, the number of annual epidemics has nearly tripled. In the past 15 years alone, outbreaks of both viruses and bacteria, have killed millions of people. These include Zika, MERS-CoV, SARS, cholera, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, influenza and Ebola.
Why?
We do not know exactly why this is happening. But we live in a world where humans are increasingly connected — not only to each other but also to animals, which are responsible for about three-quarters of new infectious diseases. These are three factors:
- Human Travel – Humans are moving around the planet more (and faster) than at any other time in history; giving pathogens endless opportunities to find new hosts, cross borders and evolve into stronger strains;
- Climate Change – Climate change is also fuelling the spread of disease, as warmer temperatures disrupt our ecological balance and expand the habitats of mosquitoes and other disease-carrying species;
- Antibiotic Resistance – Meanwhile, antimicrobial resistance is undermining some of the gains we have made in controlling outbreaks, as infections become more difficult to eradicate.
History
Pandemics are not new. The 10 Plagues of Egypt are described in the Bible (Exodus 5:3, 7:14-12:36; 1 Samuel 4:8; and Amos 4:10) and the Quran.
Next Pandemic?
The next pandemic is only a matter of time. It may not be a coronavirus like COVID-19. But it may be another again. And as has become obvious over the last few years, we remain dangerously underprepared.
