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Tag: heat-related illness

  • How do pets react to California’s extreme heat?

    How do pets react to California’s extreme heat?

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    (FOX40.COM) – California’s extreme heat temperatures may be dangerous for humans, but they are also problematic for pets too.
    • Video Above: Most popular pets

    Every year hundreds of pets die from heat-related illnesses. Some animal fatalities occur from being left outdoors during heat waves, and others from being left in parked vehicles during times of elevated temperatures.

    According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, the temperature inside a vehicle can rise almost 20 degrees in just 10 minutes, and almost 30 degrees in 20 minutes. At one hour, a vehicle’s inside temperature can be more than 40 degrees higher than the outside temperature – even on a 70-degree day.

    The National Weather Service of Sacramento advised pet owners to never leave their animals unattended in a vehicle, even with windows cracked. Studies show that rolled-down windows have little effect in preventing heat-related illnesses.

    “Your furry friends are impacted by the heat too!” NWS said in a social media post. “Animals can die of a heatstroke within 15 minutes.”

    Signs of heat stroke in dogs and pets

    The California Department of Public Health warned of signs of heat-related illness to look for in animals:

    • Breathing quickly or panting louder/heavier than usual. Open-mouthed breathing/panting in cats is not normal and is a sign of being extremely hot, stressed, or sick.
    • Weakness and/or collapse
    • Dry or sticky gums
    • Pale, muddy, or red-colored gums (normal is light pink and moist)
    • Drooling
    • Vomiting or diarrhea
    • Excessively tired, dizzy, or confused
    • Bruising or bleeding​

    To prevent heat-related illness and/or death, CDPH advised pet owners to provide their animals with fresh cool water in tip-proof bowl, don’t force them to exercise when it is hot and humid, bring pets inside during periods of extreme heat, ensure pets have plenty of shade, provide protective booties against hot asphalt/concrete, and keep pets well-groomed.

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    Veronica Catlin

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  • Summer heat is coming. Here’s a new interactive tool to help you deal with your health conditions

    Summer heat is coming. Here’s a new interactive tool to help you deal with your health conditions

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    Despite the cooler temperatures across Southern California, the summer heat is just months away and a new interactive tool is available to help you assess how the impending high temperatures can affect your health and suggest steps to take avoid heat-related illnesses.

    Due to climate change, hot weather is lasting longer and happening more frequently, said Dr. Aaron Bernstein, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Environmental Health and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

    Talking about the summer heat with “anyone who has been alive for more than a couple of decades” will typically generate the response, “It is hotter than I remember it,” Bernstein said.

    The European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service said 2023 was the Earth’s hottest year on record, with seven consecutive months of above-average temperatures.

    Hotter temperatures can result in heat-related illnesses, and if left untreated, it can lead to death. A recent CDC report found that daily emergency department visits because of heat-related illness in 2023 peaked in several regions.

    To help you prepare for the future high temperatures, the CDC and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Weather Service have collaborated to create an interactive online tool to help you understand how the heat in your area can affect your health and what you can do to protect yourself. The tool’s availability has been expanded to 48 states in the U.S.

    Understanding heat and health

    HeatRisk is an online dashboard that enables users to check the seven-day forecast according to their ZIP Code. Instead of temperature degrees, the forecast uses a five-level color scale to indicate the health risk imposed by the heat, taking into consideration heat exposure and the role of humidity in the air.

    The five colors are green (no risk), yellow (minor risk), orange (moderate risk), red (major risk) and magenta (extreme risk).

    What separates HeatRisk forecast from other heat-related indicators such as the National Weather Service’s HeatRisk Prototype and heat index is that it combines all of the temperature, air quality and humidity information from previous tools to provide users with actionable guidance to deal with the health risk of rising temperatures.

    The tool will help you answer questions such as:

    • Is it too hot to participate in an outdoor activity? An outdoor activity can be a hike, sport event or running.
    • If I have a chronic medical condition, could I be more sensitive to heat exposure?

    Hotter temperatures can lead to heatstroke, heat exhaustion, heat cramps, sunburn or heat rash, according to the Los Angeles County Public Health Department.

    People who are at greatest risk for heat-related illness include infants and children up to 4 years of age, people 65 and older, people who are overweight and people who are ill or on certain medication, according to the CDC.

    “For example heart disease, we know that many of the medications that are used to treat high blood pressure can also make people more sensitive to heat.” Bernstein said.

    Red indicator or higher

    When the HeatRisk tool displays a particular risk for the day and the rest of the week, it also shares actions the user can take to protect their health.

    As of Wednesday, the tool says there is little to no risk in Los Angeles, but on Saturday, a slight uptick in temperature raises the risk to the “minor” level. The suggested actions are staying hydrated and cool.

    The goal of the tool, Bernstein said, is that users will either take precautions during hotter days and, if needed, work with their doctor to come up with a plan to prepare for high-temperature days, particularly for people with medical conditions.

    For example, someone with a chronic medical condition should take extra precautions during a heat wave such as remain in a room with air conditioning. If that person doesn’t have air conditioning, they should make a plan to be in a cool indoor area, he said.

    The tool isn’t just for vulnerable populations. Everyone should be taking their heat risk into account, especially when the indicator is showing the risk is major (red) or extreme (magenta), said Kimberly McMahon, program manager for the National Weather Service’s public weather services.

    The information can be used by city officials and community organizations to start preparing to “hand out bottles of water or potentially open up cooling shelters,” McMahon said.

    Heat safety reminders

    Most people plan for hazards that can occur during the winter and natural disaster events. McMahon advises people to plan for the heat as well.

    That plan should include having enough drinking water available and a cool place in the house or apartment building.

    If a cool place at home isn’t possible, or the home does not have air conditioning, McMahon and Bernstein suggest finding cool places that are open to the public, such as libraries, malls and cooling centers.

    During these hotter days, make a plan of whom to check-in with and have someone to check on you. There are members of the community — family, friends or neighbors — who might be immobile or don’t have access to transportation and are in need of assistance.

    On top of staying cool and hydrated, people should be aware of the signs and symptoms to the onset of a heat-related illness, such as muscle cramping, heavy sweating, shortness of breath, dizziness, headaches, weakness and nausea, Bernstein said.

    The Los Angeles County Public Health Department has a comprehensive list of heat-related illnesses, their specific symptoms and what to do if someone is having symptoms.

    Some other tips for staying cool are:

    • Eat foods with high-water content, such as watermelon and cucumbers, but limit or avoid sugary, alcoholic and caffeinated drinks.
    • Wear loose, light-colored clothing and hats for protection.
    • Keep your pets indoors if possible. If you have to keep them outside, make sure they have plenty of shade and water.
    • Take a cold shower.
    • If possible, avoid using your stove, oven or other appliances that generate heat.

    The national agencies are taking feedback on the new tool. Users can share their experience by filling out this online survey.

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    Karen Garcia

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  • Climate Change Is Harming Physical and Mental Health

    Climate Change Is Harming Physical and Mental Health

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    Dec. 16, 2022 — Laken Brooks, a 27-year-old PhD student at the University of Florida, has dealt with the skin condition psoriasis since she was a preteen. It’s always been a painful and difficult condition to manage, but over the past several years, Brooks has struggled even more. She suspects her psoriasis is worse thanks to climate change.

     “Each year, the summer seems to last a bit longer,” Brooks says. “When I first moved to Florida (5 years ago), I noticed that sunburn and sweat made my skin feel even itchier than normal. I tried to alleviate some of the symptoms by wearing hats and head scarves, and I expected that I would acclimate to the new climate. But it’s difficult to acclimate when each year, the temperatures continue going up and my skin can never really get accustomed to the Florida climate.”

    Brooks is onto something — climate change is having increasingly bigger impacts on health. The seventh annual The Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change, released this fall, confirms that. The report, authored by nearly 100 experts from over 50 academic institutions and agencies, tracks the impact of climate change on global health. The 2022 version revealed that every year, in every region of the globe, climate change is undermining health. 

    The Lancet report this year identified four major harms from climate change: air quality, heat-related illness, infectious disease, and mental health.

    Renee Salas, MD, of the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, is one of the report’s authors. She’s regularly sees how climate change is harming her patients’ health — especially those who cannot afford to mitigate its impacts. 

    “We had a patient present to the emergency room last summer with a core temperature of 106,” she explains. “He met the criteria for heat stroke. He and his wife lived in an upper story apartment with no access to A/C.”

    Salas sees it as part of her responsibility to her patients to make the connections between climate change and health effects. Heat, in particular, is a palpable way for people to understand that connection, she says. 

    The impacts go beyond heat, however. “I have concerns about all of them,” says Salas. “And how climate change impacts a person will be impacted by how they live and the resources they have.” 

    Climate’s Impact on Mental Health 

    While heat might be the most obvious of harms people recognize from climate change, the mental health piece of the equation is likely the least. Susan Clayton, PhD, is a professor of psychology and environmental studies at the College of Wooster in Ohio. She’s been studying the link between the two for several years and has written three papers on the subject, the first in 2014. 

    “We’re reaching a point where people express that they’re anxious about climate change, but they don’t recognize that as a mental health threat,” she says. 

    In her work on the subject, Clayton has identified four categories where climate change impacts mental health: 

    • Increasingly severe weather events: As more people experience devastating weather events, more people are also experiencing PTSD, clinical anxiety, depression, and substance abuse.
    • Slower changes: It doesn’t take a category 5 hurricane to dole out mental health harm. As temperatures rise higher than normal for longer periods of time, so too do the rates of suicide and psychiatric hospitalizations.
    • Involuntary displacement: Many people love and are rooted to where they live. As coastal flooding, wildfires, and other weather events displace them, they suffer deteriorating mental health. 
    • Awareness of climate change: As everyone bears witness to climate change and become increasingly aware of its impacts, collective anxiety levels rise. For most people this is manageable, but it’s still harmful.

    While talking about climate change and how it harms mental health can sometimes increase feelings of anxiety and other conditions, it’s an essential conversation to have, says Clayton. “When you’re overwhelmed and disempowered, it can be too much to cope with,” she explains. “But it can also encourage you to attend to the issue.” 

    Mitigation in the Meantime 

    As the data continues to pour out and demonstrate the link between climate change and health, it remains difficult for people to understand. For Salas, this can often be frustrating. 

    “I often have to walk upstream to understand what’s causing patients’ issues in the first place,” she says. “That’s why I do the work I do — I cannot just treat patients in the ER and call it good. That’s like putting a band aid on a bullet wound.” 

    Recognizing and pointing out that those in the line of fire are often those with fewer resources to change how climate is impacting their health is a starting point. 

    “We recognize that policy and higher-level decisions have drive these situations,” Salas says. “So I try to find the risks, educate patients, and then give them recommendations to protect themselves.”

    This might look like suggesting a patient add an air filtration system in their home, or ensuring they have a back-up plan for using a nebulizer if the electricity is knocked out. The biggest message to get across, says Salas, is that health is harmed by what is happening “upstream.” “We need political and social will to change,” she says. “We’re beginning to see this — the health community is rising up and recognizing it as fundamental to the mission of medicine.” 

    For people like Brooks, who are not able to relocate now, the temporary fix is trying to minimize how climate change exacerbates existing conditions. “I have been able to mitigate some flare-ups by taking cool showers,” she says. “I don’t plan to live in Florida forever, but right now I don’t have the resources to transplant my life and move somewhere else.”

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