Important information Heat is a significant threat to occupational and environmental health.
Heat stress is the leading cause of weather-related deaths, and it can make asthma, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, mental health issues, and other conditions worse. It can also make people more likely to get into accidents and spread some infectious diseases. The medical emergency known as heatstroke has a high fatality rate. The number of people exposed to extreme heat is growing exponentially due to climate change in all world regions. Between 2000–2004 and 2017–2021, heat-related mortality among people over 65 increased by approximately 85 percent
(1). According to studies, approximately 489 000 deaths due to heat occur annually between 2000 and 2019, with 36% occurring in Europe and 45% in Asia
(2). An estimated 61 672 people will die from heat-related excess in Europe alone in the summer of 2022
(3). High intensity heatwave events can bring high acute mortality; in 2003, 70 000 people in Europe died as a result of the June–August event. In 2010, 56 000 excess deaths occurred during a 44–day heatwave in the Russian Federation.
Vulnerability to heat is shaped by both physiological factors, such as age and health status, and exposure factors such as occupation and socio-economic conditions.
With specific public health and multi-sectoral policies and interventions, the adverse health effects of heat are largely predictable and largely preventable. The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued guidelines for public health institutions regarding the identification and management of risks related to extreme heat. Action on climate change combined with comprehensive preparedness and risk management can save lives now and in the future.
Overview
A heatwave is a time when a series of unusually hot days and nights accumulate local excess heat. Heatwaves and prolonged excess heat conditions are increasing in frequency, duration, intensity and magnitude due to climate change. Even heat waves with a low or moderate intensity can have an effect on the health and well-being of vulnerable groups. Climate change will continue to increase the frequency and intensity of extreme heat and heat waves in the 21st century. The human body is put under cumulative stress over prolonged periods of high daytime and nighttime temperatures, which raises the likelihood of illness and death from heat exposure. Heatwaves can acutely impact large populations for short periods of time, often trigger public health emergencies, and result in excess mortality and cascading socioeconomic impacts (for example, lost work capacity and labor productivity).
When power outages accompany heatwaves and disrupt health facilities, transportation, and water infrastructure, they can also result in a loss of capacity for the delivery of health services. Populations are becoming more vulnerable to adverse heat impacts as a result of population aging and the rising prevalence of non-communicable diseases such as respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, dementia, renal disease, and musculoskeletal diseases. With the loss of green space and inappropriate housing materials, such as metal roofs, that increase human exposure to excessive heat, cities are not being designed to minimize the accumulation and generation of urban heat. Heat-related health risks are still poorly understood by the general public and healthcare professionals. In order to manage the acute increases in admissions that are associated with heatwaves, health professionals ought to make adjustments to their guidance, planning, and interventions to take into account the rising amount of heat exposure. Individual, community, organizational, governmental, and societal interventions that are practical, attainable, and frequently low-cost can save lives. Who will be impacted? High temperatures are frequently experienced by many tropical and subtropical populations. Excess heat exposure to the population is seasonal in the middle and upper latitudes. Individual vulnerability to heat for physiological or clinical factors in adults is well described
(4). There are a number of ways that heat can harm health, both directly and indirectly. There is limited research on the impact of chronic (sustained) exposure to high temperatures and humidity.
Athletes, manual and outdoor workers, and civil protection personnel are all susceptible to exertional heat stress as a result of their work. Urban and rural poor are often disproportionately exposed to overheating due to low quality housing and lack of access to cooling. Due to building materials, informal settlements are often hotter than other urban areas in some cities. Gender can have a significant impact on heat exposure, as evidenced by the fact that women typically cook indoors during hot weather. Factors that make you most vulnerable to heat What health effects does heat have? The amount of heat stored in the human body is determined by a combination of
(a) an inability to eliminate internally generated heat from metabolic processes due to environmental heat stress (for example, high temperature, high humidity, low wind, high thermal radiation),
(b) clothing creating a barrier to heat loss,
(c) external heat gain from the environment.
The body’s inability to regulate internal temperature and eliminate heat gain in such conditions increases the risk of heat exhaustion and heatstroke. The strain put on the body as it tries to cool itself also stresses the heart and kidneys. Consequently, extreme heat can result in acute kidney injury as well as an increase in health risks associated with chronic conditions (such as cardiovascular, mental, respiratory, and diabetes-related conditions). When a heat alert is issued, interventions must also be swift due to the rapidity with which deaths and hospitalizations are caused by extreme heat. Heat can also disrupt and compromise essential health services, such as the loss of power supply and transport. Heat will reduce working productivity and increases the risk of accidents. In extremely hot weather, it is difficult to finish work or study, and heatwaves may force schools and other institutions to close. Heat waves can also be linked to dangerous instances of air pollution. The timing, intensity, and duration of a heat event, as well as the degree of acclimatization and adaptability of the local population, infrastructure, and institutions, determine the scope and nature of the health effects of heat. Infographic: Scale and nature of the health impacts of heat
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