Last year, the Dutch city of The Hague made history by becoming the first in the world to ban fossil fuel advertising. Fossil fuel companies were sufficiently upset to challenge the ban in court last month – and they lost.

This fierce opposition by the fossil fuel industry shows how vital advertising is to its survival. By banning these ads from streets, transport and media, The Hague removed a key barrier to the clean energy transition. The result could have positive implications for people everywhere.

Adverts normalise the use of fossil fuels in daily life. Clever marketing tactics present fossil fuels as essential to daily life, or even as climate solutions. From sponsorship of community events to sports teams, they help maintain public support.

As health professionals, we believe banning these ads is not censorship. It is an essential public health intervention against the growing health emergency fueled by coal, oil, and gas.

Fossil fuels are a primary climate change driver, and a direct threat to human health. Air pollution, largely caused by burning fossil fuels, is responsible for seven million premature deaths annually.

In cities from Jakarta to Johannesburg, Delhi to The Hague, we see patients struggling to breathe because of toxic air. From asthma in children to strokes and heart disease, the health toll is staggering. Fossil fuels are also driving the climate crisis, with heatwaves claiming lives across Europe and Asia as record-breaking temperatures push health systems to the brink.

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Our duty as health professionals is to prevent harm and protect health. Supporting fossil fuel ad bans is part of our responsibility. We owe it to our patients and to future generations to ensure that public spaces promote health, not harm.

These impacts are clear in our home countries. In Malaysia, flash floods displaced thousands and overwhelmed emergency services. People in the United States are suffering severe health impacts caused by climate-exacerbated wildfires – from respiratory illnesses caused by smoke exposure, to the mental health strain on communities repeatedly displaced and living with trauma.