How Repeated Heat Waves Could Be Accelerating Human Ageing

Due to climate change, heat waves are happening more often and lasting longer. This isn’t just uncomfortable, it’s a growing public health concern.

According to a study published in Nature Climate Change, years of repeated heat wave exposure may cause people to age faster biologically than they do chronologically.

The research, led by Cui Guo from Taiwan, looked at the difference between someone's biological age and chronological age, which is called Accelerated Ageing.

The study found that manual labourers, rural residents, and people living in areas with few air conditioners were the most affected.

Researchers analyzed health data from 24,922 adults in Taiwan between 2008 and 2022. On average, participants were around 46 years old.

People seemed to adapt to heat waves over time, but that didn’t stop the harmful health effects. The damage from repeated exposure still built up over the years.

The study didn’t track things like how much time people spent outside or how often they used ACs, etc. Future studies need to include more variables and more diverse groups.

The findings suggest that governments and health systems should take action to protect the most vulnerable populations.

Read more at Phys.org. 

Research published in Nature Climate Change.