I was at a local market some time ago, dodging puddles and watching the sheer volume of single-use plastic bags changing hands. This scene is mirrored across much of the developing world and, even more starkly, in towns and cities across our country. It got me thinking. We often talk about sustainability as if it were a luxury hobby for those with too much time. However, as someone who spends his life examining health data, I am here to present a formal medical case. Sustainability is not about saving trees in some abstract sense; it is a critical intervention for your lungs, gut, and children’s health.
Now, stripped of the corporate jargon, sustainability is simply the ability to meet our own needs without sabotaging the ability of our children to meet theirs. It is about balance. Think of your health as a bank account, where if you spend more than you deposit, you go into debt. Right now, our global lifestyle is living on a massive, high-interest credit card, and our bodies are starting to receive the debt collection notices in the form of rising chronic illness and environmental fatigue. We must understand that the human body was never designed to process the sheer volume of synthetic waste and chemical runoff that we now consider part of modern life.
Globally, we are witnessing the big three sustainability failures, which are climate instability, biodiversity loss, and waste. We are producing more than the Earth can break down, and the consequences are becoming intimate and worrisome. Microplastics have now been found in human blood, lungs, and even placentas. This is not just an environmental issue but a profound biological one. We are essentially terraforming our internal anatomy with the debris of our external convenience.
In Nigeria, this crisis hits a different key entirely. I have seen the impact of the resource curse first-hand through oil spills in the Niger Delta, poisoning water tables, and the open burning of refuse in urban centres. When we talk about sustainability in a Nigerian context, we are not just talking about carbon footprints; we are talking about basic survival. The lack of sustainable waste management means that heavy metals leak into the soil where the food we eat grows, and soot from generators and illegal refineries settles deep in the bronchioles of toddlers. When sustainability fails, our biology pays the price.
The truth is that the link between our environment and our clinics is direct and unforgiving. Particulate matter from burning waste and fossil fuels leads to chronic bronchitis, asthma, and a host of cardiovascular issues. As we destroy natural habitats and mess with drainage systems, we create artificial breeding grounds for mosquitoes, which means more malaria, dengue, and Zika. The chemicals in non-sustainable plastics, such as bisphenol A and phthalates, mimic hormones, which are linked to rising infertility rates and metabolic disorders that were rare just a century ago. As the planet warms, we also see more heatstroke and kidney failure, particularly in manual labourers and the elderly who cannot regulate their internal temperature against an increasingly hostile atmosphere.
Now, you might not see unsustainability on a standard blood test, but you see it in the symptoms that define our modern era. It is the persistent city cough that will not go away despite rounds of antibiotics. It is the uptick in skin rashes and waterborne illnesses after a flood. It is the strange reality of seasonal allergies lasting all year round because plants are producing more pollen in response to higher levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide.
If we continue to treat the Earth as an infinite cash machine, the problem will not just be economic. We are looking at a future of antimicrobial resistance driven by pharmaceutical waste in our waterways, food insecurity as soil loses its vital nutrients, and a mental health crisis often called eco-anxiety, where the younger generation feels a profound sense of hopelessness about their physical safety and the viability of their future.
Sadly, the danger of doing nothing is not a distant threat; it is a current reality for the patient sitting in the waiting room today. When we ignore the sustainability of our food systems, we end up with nutrient-deficient produce that leaves us overfed but malnourished. When we ignore the sustainability of our cities, we end up with urban heat islands that exacerbate heart conditions. We are currently witnessing a collision between our biological limitations and our industrial excesses. The human frame can only tolerate so much lead in the water, so much sulphur in the air, and so much microplastic in the food chain before the systems of the body begin to fail.
The truth is that we often wait for the government to fix this, and while policy is vital, sustainability starts with every one of us. It is about personal responsibility and a shift in how we perceive our place in the world. This involves following the “buy less and buy better” rule, because every time you buy something, you are voting for the process by which it was made. You should opt for longevity over fast fashion or cheap, disposable gadgets that are destined for a landfill before the year is over.
Mindful consumption is also key because, generally speaking, we waste millions of tonnes of food, which represents water, land, and energy gone to waste. You should buy what you need and eat what you buy, understanding that a wasted meal is a wasted resource that someone else desperately requires.
Furthermore, you can perform a personal energy audit by switching off lights or walking instead of driving for a ten-minute trip, which is not just an environmental choice but is also excellent cardiovascular exercise. And just as important as individual action is advocacy. Whether you are in Lagos or Abuja, or anywhere else, you should demand better waste management and refuse to let the sight of a plastic-choked gutter become a normal part of your daily scenery. We must reclaim the idea that a clean environment is a fundamental human right and a cornerstone of public health.
Sustainability is not a political stance; it is preventative medicine of the highest order. We cannot be healthy people on a sick planet. It is high time we stopped viewing the environment as something out there and started seeing it as the very air in our lungs and the blood in our veins. The choices we make at the supermarket, in our homes, and in our local communities are the most powerful health interventions we have left.
So, say NO next time you are offered a plastic bag you do not really need. Resist the urge to toss that water sachet or plastic bottle into the gutter or canal. And have a rethink whenever you are tempted to leave your car engine idling. You are not just being green; you are protecting your health and the health of everyone you love. Your body and your grandchildren will thank you for the restraint you show today.
Ojenagbon, a health communication expert and certified management trainer, lives in Lagos.