Increasing temperatures from climate change may harm
babies' hearts
Increasing temperatures
from climate change could drive up the number of babies born with congenital
heart defects, warns a new study from the Journal of the American Heart Association.The report warns that heat exposure for mothers across the U.S. is set to rise.
Previous research has found a link between pregnant women's heat exposure and congenital heart defects in their babies. Congenital heart defects affect about 40,000 babies in the U.S. annually, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The researchers
estimated the number of births to take place from 2025 to 2035 and the expected
increase in maternal heat exposure as a result of warming temperatures, which
meant looking at the number of excessively hot days and the frequency of
extreme heat days.
They found the greatest projected increases in the number of babies born with heart defects in the Midwest, followed by the Northeast and the South.
They found the greatest projected increases in the number of babies born with heart defects in the Midwest, followed by the Northeast and the South.
In eight
states—Arkansas, Texas, California, Iowa, North Caroline, Georgia, New York and
Utah—the researchers projected an additional 7,000 cases of congenital heart
defects over the 11 years studied.
"Our results
highlight the dramatic ways in which climate change can affect human health and
suggest that pediatric heart disease stemming from structural heart
malformations may become an important consequence of rising temperatures,"
said lead author Dr. Wangjian Zhang, a post-doctoral research fellow at the
University of Albany, in a statement.
Dr. Shao Lin, a
co-author and associate director of environmental health services at the
University at Albany, State University of New York, said in a statement the
report highlights the importantance of doctors telling pregnant women to avoid
extreme heat. She added that three to eight weeks after conception is the the
"critical period of pregnancy."
It's not entirely clear
why maternal heat exposure spurs more heart defects in babies. Animal studies
probing the link have found that the heat may kill some crucial fetal cells or
interfere with heat-sensitive proteins that are vital for the babies'
development.
"Although this
study is preliminary, it would be prudent for women in the early weeks of
pregnancy to avoid heat extremes similar to the advice given to persons with
cardiovascular and pulmonary disease during heart spells," Lin said.
You can see the full report here.