The health impact of a heatwave depends on the intensity and duration of the temperature, the acclimatization and adaptation of the population, and the infrastructure and preparedness. Exposure to heat causes severe symptoms, such as heat exhaustion and heat stroke – a condition which causes faintness, as well as dry, warm skin, due to the inability of the body to control high temperatures ...
During a heatwave you should aim to keep your living space cool. Check the room temperature between 08:00 and 10:00, at 13:00 and at night after 22:00. Ideally, the room temperature should be kept below 32 °C during the day and 24 °C during the night. This is especially important for infants, adults over the age of 60 years or those who have chronic health conditions. Use the night air to ...
Heatwaves also place an increased strain on infrastructure (power, water and transport). Clothes and food retailing, tourism and ecosystem services can also be affected, such that there may be socioeconomic “winners and losers” from heatwave events. In some instances, heatwaves may even trigger social disturbances at a number of levels.
Heat is a growing health risk due to burgeoning urbanization, an increase in high-temperature extremes and demographic changes in countries with ageing populations, like most Member States of the WHO European Region. Heatwaves across the Region are affecting the health and livelihoods of millions of people and climate change is increasing the risk of them occurring. Extreme heat in the summer ...
Global temperatures and the frequency and intensity of heatwaves will rise in the 21st century as a result of climate change. High air temperatures can affect human health and lead to additional deaths. Extended periods of high day and nighttime temperatures create cumulative physiological stress on the human body which exacerbates the top causes of death globally, including respiratory and ...