When climate change reaches the lungs

By Rita Oluwasaanufunmi

Some people experience climate change through headlines, while others experience it directly through their lungs.

For millions living with respiratory conditions, asthma is not the end of a full life, but it forces an individual to notice the things everyday people call “normal”.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), asthma affected an estimated 363 million people in 2023 globally and caused 442,000 deaths. Yet, inside many communities, public understanding remains dangerously low regarding what living with it truly means.

The physical burden of asthma is heavily influenced by rapid environmental shifts. Air pollution from vehicles, industrial zones, and open waste burning continuously irritates the airways, while unpredictable changes in temperature, dust, and pollen worsen daily symptoms.

Climate change is not a distant, future threat in Nigeria. It lives on polluted roads, in thick smoke from burning bushes, harsh chemical fragrances, rising city heat waves, and air that suddenly feels completely unsafe to breathe. For an asthmatic, a change in season is never just a shift in the weather, it is a daily negotiation for survival.

This battle is particularly real across university campuses as the dry season approaches. In Nigeria, the Harmattan season is traditionally associated with dry, dusty, and cold conditions, which instantly trigger hyper-reactive airways.

“Dealing with severe coughing, wheezing, chest tightness, and the inability to take a long walk without feeling intense pressure in my chest is a major challenge for me as a student during Harmattan,” one university student shared. “Even simple activities become exhausting.”

Under these conditions, movement becomes a strategy. Inhalers become a next of kin. A protective face mask becomes a personal shield.

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The human lungs rarely give a warning before they react, leading to serious misunderstandings in academic spaces.

Another student recalled leaving home early for a 7 a.m. lecture when the weather suddenly took a toll.

“My class was on the third floor of my faculty building. Climbing the stairs in the cold air made me lose so much breath. My nose was blocked and I could barely breathe properly, but I kept pushing myself. By the time I got to class, I began to experience severe difficulty in breathing. My chest tightened, and all I could do was gasp for air. It was a terrible experience.”

On a busy campus, a missed lecture or an empty seat looks like poor time management, laziness, or indifference. Sometimes, it is simply a student whose lungs refused to cooperate that morning.

This is why widespread public awareness matters before the seasons fully set in. People living with asthma need clear access to their triggers and prescribed treatment plans, but families, schools, and communities must also learn that asthma symptoms are not signs of exaggeration. The environment matters as much. Reducing open waste burning, limiting exposure to smoke, paying attention to air quality, and creating cleaner spaces are not just environmental topics, they are urgent public health concerns.

Before the first heavy Harmattan dust settles, before cold mornings become routine, and before people begin coughing their way through daily routines, there is a collective need to pay attention. The next time a student pauses halfway up a campus staircase, it may look like exhaustion. The next time someone misses an examination, it may look like irresponsibility. But sometimes, there is a whole battle happening inside the chest that nobody around them can see. Climate change is already arriving with the dust, the smoke, and the cold air, and when the seasons shift, it is vital to remember that not every lung experiences that change the same way.

Oluwasaanufunmi, a student of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, is an intern with the Nigerian Tribune.