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The World Isn’t Ready for the Mental Health Toll of Extreme Heat

The coming summer is forecast to be a scorcher across the U.S. And climate
scientists predict that at least one of the next five years will beat 2024
as the hottest year ever recorded globally. As heat waves are getting more
intense and prolonged, their effect on the mind and body are also becoming
more dire. Children and older people, as well as those who work outdoors,
are most at risk. So are those with mental health disorders. Heat waves are
the single highest cause of weather-related deaths in the U.S., where an
estimated 1,300 fatalities from heat stroke and other temperature-related
complications occur every year. Even those who survive a period of extreme
heat may suffer serious neurological or other mental-health-related
disorders. A new study published in Current Environmental Health Reports
finds that the world is startlingly unprepared to deal with the mental
health consequences of climate change. Of 83 action plans for heat-related
health problems that were reviewed for the study, fewer than a third
acknowledged the mental health effects of extreme or prolonged high
temperatures. And only a fifth of these plans outlined specific actions to
deal with contingencies such as increased hospitalizations for mental
health disorders.

 Scientific American 2nd June 2025, https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-world-isnt-ready-for-the-mental-health-toll-of-extreme-heat/

June 6, 2025 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | climate change