• Posted December 30, 2024

Heat Waves Threaten Brain Health, Study Suggests

Global warming will increasingly have dire consequences for people with degenerative brain disorders like dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.

Heat waves caused by climate change will exacerbate the symptoms of people with brain diseases, increasing their risk of death, researchers reported recently in the journal JAMA Neurology.

For example, deaths and hospitalizations related to Parkinson’s increased more than 10% for every increase of 1 degree Fahrenheit over a threshold of 93 degrees, earlier research has established.

“These deaths are preventable, and doctors can make a difference,” lead researcher Dr. Indu Subramanian, a neurologist with UCLA Health, said in a news release from the college. 

2024 is set to end as Earth’s hottest year on record, breaking the previous record set in 2023, researchers said.

People suffering from degenerative brain diseases are particularly vulnerable to health problems caused by crushing heat waves, researchers noted.

For example, the impact of Parkinson’s on the body’s ability to regulate its automatic functions increases the risk of dehydration, head stroke and fainting during hot weather.

Parkinson’s and other brain conditions can also compromise a person’s ability to sweat, making them more likely to overheat, researchers noted.

What's more, medications that people take for these brain disorders can interfere with the body’s ability to cool itself off.

According to Subramanian, these at-risk patients are less likely to know about the risk that heat poses because they tend to be socially isolated.

“I was surprised how many patients view us docs or health care providers as their only touch point with the world outside their house,” Subramanian said.

Doctors need to start regularly screening these patients for social isolation, and connect them to resources that can protect them during heat waves, Subramanian emphasized.

For example, telemedicine can give docs a chance to check in on high-risk patients and make sure they’re taking steps to protect themselves from the heat.

“People with Parkinson’s disease and dementias are at risk for dying in heat waves and we can be proactive about preventing this,” Subramanian concluded.

More information

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on climate change and health.

SOURCE: UCLA, news release, Dec. 17, 2024