Sacramento: A new study has sounded a stark warning, predicting a significant surge in mortality from extreme temperatures in the United States by the mid-21st century, with certain populations facing a disproportionately severe impact.
According to the study published on Friday on the Journal of the American Medical Association website, excessive heat and cold currently cause approximately 8,250 deaths per year.
According to Xinhua, researchers anticipate that severe temperature-related mortality in the contiguous United States might more than double or perhaps treble between 2036 and 2065, depending on future greenhouse gas emissions.
Under a scenario with lower emissions growth, that figure might rise to more than 19,300 deaths annually by mid-century. A higher emission scenario might result in roughly 26,600 deaths annually.
“Despite a decrease in extreme cold-related deaths, overall extreme temperature-related deaths were projected to more than double or triple depending on the emissions increase scenario analysed,” the study’s authors wrote.
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According to the projections, certain groups face greater dangers. Hispanic adults may have a 537.5 percent increase in extreme temperature mortality compared to non-Hispanic white adults, and African American people may experience a 278.2% increase.
Temperature-related mortality is expected to be higher among older persons and those living in metropolitan regions. The researchers concluded that this is likely due to variables such as the urban heat island effect.
They cited reasons such as limited access to air conditioning, increased urban heat island effects, reduced green space exposure, and increased exposure to traffic-related air pollution in neighbourhoods where many racial and ethnic minorities live.
The authors conclude with a powerful message: “Along with efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, efforts to mitigate the adverse outcomes of extreme temperatures for population health are needed.”
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–IANS
File photo: Xinhua
