Health · Medical Research · 1 hr ago
Heat waves linked to higher risk of premature births
Rising temperatures can increase risks during pregnancy, including premature birth, pregnancy complications and infant deaths.
Research led by medical scientist Darshnika Lakhoo examined evidence from nearly 200 studies and found that risks rise with temperature, though there is no single threshold that applies everywhere.
In Mexico, an analysis of millions of birth records found that heat waves during the final month of pregnancy were associated with up to an 18% increase in premature births.
Unusually hot weather before delivery was linked to 1,400 extra premature births a year during hot seasons in Mexico.
The risk is not limited to places that regularly experience extreme heat, because temperatures above what people normally face may also affect pregnancies in cooler climates.
Climate change is making heat waves more frequent and widespread, increasing the potential impact on mothers and babies.
Health professionals are only beginning to recognize heat as a pregnancy risk, and the research described does not specify what action will happen next.
Heat waves and unusually high temperatures are associated with higher rates of premature births, according to a Reuters analysis of birth records in Mexico.
The analysis found that heat during the final month of pregnancy was associated with up to an 18% increase in premature births.
Across Mexico, unusually high temperatures in the four weeks before delivery corresponded with a 6.5% increase in the rate of premature births.
Researchers say rising temperatures are also linked to other pregnancy and infant health risks, though no single risk threshold applies everywhere.
Medical scientist Darshnika Lakhoo, who studied heat risks in pregnancy, went into labor six weeks before her due date after experiencing complications during a period of heat waves in Johannesburg.
- Who
- Pregnant women and their babies. The analysis examined birth records in Mexico.
- What
- Heat waves and unusually high temperatures were associated with higher rates of premature births.
- When
- During the final month, or four weeks, of pregnancy.
- Where
- The birth-record analysis covered Mexico; Lakhoo experienced heat waves in Johannesburg.
- Why
- The sources associate heat exposure with increased pregnancy risks but do not state a specific biological cause.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
There were 50 heat storms, and the largest covered about 6% of the planet.
More than 665 heat storms had occurred, with the largest lasting a year and spreading across nearly 85% of Earth's surface.
Lakhoo was pregnant with twins and experiencing serious complications during repeated heat waves in Johannesburg.
Lakhoo's research team published a study on rising temperatures and pregnancy in Nature Medicine.
Lakhoo went into labor six weeks before her due date.
- Mexico
- Reuters analysis of millions of birth records
- Premature births
- Up to 18% higher during heat waves in the final month of pregnancy
- Four weeks before delivery
- Unusually high temperatures corresponded with a 6.5% increase in premature births
- Hot seasons
- More than 1,400 additional premature births annually in Mexico were equivalent to the 6.5% increase
- Heat storms in the 1960s
- 50 events; largest covered about 6% of Earth's surface
- Heat storms this decade
- More than 665 events; largest spread across nearly 85% of Earth's surface
3 sources
What people are saying
No one is going to be safe in a warming world
And especially not pregnant women.