More Australians face dying in heatwaves and they have a greater risk of catching infectious diseases as a result of climate change.
That's the latest warning from the Climate Commission, which says the effects of climate change - rising temperatures, more natural disasters and changing rainfall patterns - will affect people's health as much as the environment.
In its latest report, the commission says more heatwaves could spark a rise in heart attacks, strokes, accidents and heat exhaustion.
And in a worst case scenario, there could be up to 10 times as many deaths related to hotter temperatures in Queensland and the Northern Territory by 2100.
Diseases such as dengue fever could also be easier to catch as a result of more floods, while extra bushfires and higher pollution levels spell trouble for asthmatics.
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"Most people think of climate change as a purely environmental issue," the report's co-author Professor Lesley Hughes said.
"They know the Great Barrier Reef will be affected and there will be droughts and species will be extinct.
"But we hope this report will focus people's attention on the impact climate change can have on their health too."
The report, released on Wednesday, said there was no "silver bullet" when it came to planning how to deal with the health impacts from climate change.
It said governments needed a range of options including making sure hospitals could cope with increased patient numbers as a result of heatwaves and natural disasters, as well as improving disease surveillance and food safety.
Prof Hughes said although Australians would adapt to hotter temperatures, there would be a disproportionate rise in the number of days when the mercury climbed above 35 degrees, putting the elderly and young children at particular risk.
People in remote areas with limited access to health care services and those in poorer households unable to afford airconditioning would also struggle with the heat.
However, the report said warmer temperatures would also bring warmer winters and a likely fall in those cooler months from heart attacks, strokes and flu-like viruses.
On the impact of having more floods, the report said people faced a greater risk of bacterial infections as stagnant water was an ideal breeding ground for disease-carrying mosquitoes.
It predicted infections such as Ross River virus and dengue fever would become harder to control and more geographically widespread.
Gastroenteritis outbreaks could also become more common because warmer temperatures would make it easier for bacteria to multiply in food.
