As The number of extreme heat days continues to increase due to climate change, high temperatures weigh on our health – extremand heat has been linked to a range of health problems, including heat, dehydration and respiratory problems. But some people are more at risk than others: the warmer days put pregnant people at a higher risk of health complications.
A Central climate analysis May 14 revealed that the extreme heat caused by climate change presents dangerous risks to maternal health and the results at birth. Between 2020 and 2024, the average number of days of risk of pregnancy heat – defined as days when maximum temperatures are warmer than 95% of the temperatures observed in a given place – were not presented in 222 countries. The highest increase in heat risk days occurred mainly in developing areas with limited access to health care, including the Caribbean, parts of Central and South America and Sub -Saharan Africa.
“Pregnant women and their fetuses are more vulnerable to climate -related changes, especially around heat and extreme heat,” said Shruthi Mahalingaiah, Associate Professor of Environmental, Reproductive Health and Women at Harvard Th Chan School of Public Health. Mahalingaiah adds that, regarding extreme heat, a pregnant person may not be able to regulate temperatures in the same way as someone who is not. “Indeed, the body of pregnant women already undergoes large changes to adapt to support for a fetus, and it is more difficult to regulate and especially to cool the fetal environment to a healthy range.”
The abolition of this extreme heat puts pregnant women at a greater risk of developing high-risk conditions such as pre-eclampsia and gestational diabetes, explains Anna Bonell, assistant professor at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.
This also has an impact on the development of fetuses. “The fetus does not have its own ability to regulate its temperature, and we know that (a large part) of the development of the fetal organs is sensitive to temperature,” explains Mahalingaiah. Some studies have linked exposure to extreme heat with an increased risk of congenital malformations, including malformations of the neural tube such as vertebral bifida.
“We also know very clearly now that you have an increased risk of birth, birth, smaller babies, as well as congenital anomalies (when exposed to extreme heat),” explains Bonell. A 2024 study published by the journal Jama Network Open have found that premature and early birth rates increased when local temperatures were abnormally hot for more than four consecutive days. Prior births can have great health impacts for a child. “A baby born before the term presents an increased risk of dying, and also has an increased risk of multiple hospitalizations and current diseases,” adds Bonell.
Extreme heat is also impacting efficiency Contracting and pregnancy tests – items that can be easily damaged by high temperatures, which makes them ineffective. A analysis According to MSI reproduction choices, has revealed that, since 2011, around 11.5 million women in 26 countries have had their access to disturbed contraception due to the trip linked to the climate.
And although climate change has an impact on everyone, health risks are the most important among marginalized communities. “Low -income populations (who have) less access to health care will be disadvantaged for all things,” said Howie Wu, assistant professor of environmental health sciences at Columbia University. People who do not have access to air conditioning and in the shade are more likely to have heat -related complications, while those who live near the highways are likely to deal with more exposure to pollutants.
Other climate -related stressors have also been linked to the complications of pregnancy. It has been found that air pollution increases the probability of high blood pressure during pregnancy, low birth weight, premature birth and negative impacts on the development of the fetal brain and lungs, according to the World Health Organization. And a study in 2020 published in International environment have noted that serious storms, such as cyclones and hurricanes, could trigger early births, due to factors such as increased stress, environmental contamination and disturbance of health services.
The impact of extreme weather conditions on access to care can have a range of consequences. A December 2023 report published by XdiAn organization focused on data that quantifies climate risks, noted that human -focused climate change has increased the risk of 41% hospitals – and experts note that disturbances can have ripple effects. “In New York, for example, Hurricane Sandy has caused consequences to (the ability to provide) prenatal care,” said Wu. “These extreme weather events have consequences for care providers who, I think, are underestimated and probably undeled.”
Experts all stress, however, that much more work must be done to understand how our changing climate has an impact on pregnancies and fetal development. “It is very important to think about upstream and downstream of the reproductive life cycle for pregnant people,” explains Mahalingaiah. “And we have much more work to do to really understand everything.”