CANBERRA, Aug. 18 (Xinhua) -- An Australian research team studying the health impacts of bushfires on maternal-child health has called for global research into the issue.

The team from Australian National University (ANU) recently said an internationally-accepted research protocol is needed to aid high-quality studies on the short and long-term health impacts of catastrophic fires on pregnant women and their babies.

Led by Christopher Nolan from the ANU School of Medicine and Psychology, the team is analyzing the health implications of the 2019-20 Black Summer bushfires, which blanketed much of Australia in smoke.

"Sadly, we're going to be facing more and more of these events," Nolan said in a media release on Thursday.

"We've recently seen New York covered in smoke due to the Canadian wildfires, an all too familiar sight for many Australians."

However, researchers have encountered major difficulties in finding clear data.

Nolan said a widely accepted protocol would allow researchers worldwide to collect consistent data after major bushfire events.

"It would allow us to much more clearly answer questions like whether babies and infants exposed to bushfire smoke have a higher risk of respiratory diseases such as asthma," he said.

The researchers called for an increased focus on areas of the world that are less-resourced where women and children are typically at greater risk of illness.

"We know women with pre-existing medical conditions such as gestational diabetes or hypertension, or mental health conditions, are more likely to be adversely affected, so they should be a priority going forward," said Amita Bansal from the ANU College of Health and Medicine. ■