HBO’s The Last of Us previews what a fungal apocalypse might look like. While scientists aren’t worried about the Cordyceps fungus taking us out IRL, deaths due to severe fungal infections are going up and raising alerts from publichealth agencies.

I explain three big reasons why the next big health threat might come from a fungus.

0:00 Fungal infections kill an average of 1.6 million people per year
0:30 How climate change has aided in fungi production
2:11 Infectious fungi are more dangerous for compromised immune systems
2:42 Why there are limited treatment options for fungal infections
3:29 How worried should you be about fungi?

I’m Daniela Hernandez, a health and science reporter for WSJ, and on this channel I’ll be covering a variety of subjects from neuroscience to the science of food and public health. If you’re interested in science and health and how cutting edge research impacts our lives, don’t forget to subscribe.

#Fungi #Infection #DanielaHernandez