Climate change is one of the greatest public health threats humanity has ever faced. Global warming is part of this threat. Increasing temperatures are linked to deteriorating health, especially in vulnerable populations, including pregnant women and children.
Scientists have previously shown that heat exposure increases the risk of preterm birth and stillbirth. New research continues to uncover worrying links to poor outcomes for mothers and their babies. Congenital abnormalities, hypertension in pregnancy and low birth weight are some of the dangers of increasing heat.
One area that has not received as much attention is the long-term effect that heat exposure during pregnancy might have on the baby. To explore this question, we conducted a systematic review of all the existing research on the effects of heat exposure in pregnancy on health and socioeconomic consequences in later life. Systematic reviews are designed to provide the highest level of medical evidence, collating and summarising all the findings of qualifying research, rather than relying on just one study.
Our findings were clear. They showed that people who had been exposed to excessive heat before they were born suffered alarming lifelong effects. The most common measure of heat is the average air temperature, but some studies used more complex measures that adjusted for the humidity, and other factors that influence how an individual experiences heat.
How we define dangerous levels of heat for pregnant women.