Impact of extreme heat ‘underestimated’ on those 60 and older: Lancet study

The impact of extreme heat on people 60 years or older has been “underestimated” a new study published in The Lancet suggests. Heat limits were evaluated in young (18–39 years), middle-aged (40–59 years), and older adults (60 years) to evaluate how global warming impacts different age groups as the planet continues to warm up.Health academics from Stanford University estimated that if the planet gets 1.5°C warmer, 22 per cent of the world’s older adult population will experience “frequent and widespread exceedance of heat-compensability limits,” which means their bodies will no longer be able to cool them down to compensate for extreme heat levels.Currently, Earth’s 2025 average temperature sits at 2.14 degrees Fahrenheit (1.19°C), according to NASA. However, 2024’s temperatures (2.30 degrees Fahrenheit, 1.28°C) were “the warmest on record.” Story continues below advertisement “As the planet warms, understanding where, when, and to what extent environmental conditions will exceed human heat tolerance becomes crucial,” the study states.“Intolerable heat will be experienced at much larger scales and for longer durations, affecting far more people than previously thought.” 1:59 ‘Extre...