Identifying who is at risk and why is essential for building strategies to protect the most vulnerable. This could include early warning systems or compensation for employees who miss work due to heat. Climate change is happening and intensifying. The era of ‘hot brains’ is just beginning
As heatwaves become increasingly intense due to climate change, scientists are trying to understand how extreme heat changes the way the brain works, reports the BBC.Jake, when he was five months old, suffered a seizure that was followed by others, exacerbated during hot weather, and his family used all kinds of methods to cool him down. A genetic analysis when he was 18 months old diagnosed him with Dravet syndrome, a neurological pathology that includes a form of epilepsy and affects one in 15 children. Seizures are often accompanied by intellectual disability, autism, ADHD, difficulties with speech, movement, eating and sleeping. Heat and sudden changes in temperature trigger seizures. Dravet syndrome is just one of the neurological diseases that appear as a result of high temperatures. Neurologist Sanjay Sisodiya from University College London, discovered a host of diseases that are exacerbated by heat and humidity such as epilepsy, thrombosis, encephalitis, multiple sclerosis, migraines, etc. He also discovered that the effects of climate change on our brains are becoming apparent.
Heat can make us more violent, irritable, and depressed. So what will happen to our brains as temperatures rise?
Our brain is on average 1 degree Celsius hotter than the body and produces heat, so the organization has to work hard to cool it. Brain cells are very sensitive to heat and some molecules that transmit messages are affected by temperature and may not function properly in case of disorder. Heat waves that increase especially at night, affect the quality of sleep and our mood by worsening the symptoms of some diseases. In epileptics, it can increase seizures while increasing hospitalizations and mortality of dementia patients.
High temperatures increase thrombosis and mortality. “Given that there are seven million deaths from thrombosis a year worldwide, heat could affect 10 of them,” says Bethan Davies from University Hospitals Sussex.
Heat-related blood clots are common in low- and middle-income countries that are most affected by climate change. New data shows that the elderly and those with lower socioeconomic status are at increased risk of heat-related deaths. A hotter planet is affecting children’s neurological development. “There is a link between extreme heat and problematic pregnancies such as premature births,” says Jane Hirst of Imperial College London. Reviews of scientific research show that heatwaves are associated with a 26% increase in premature births that can lead to neurodevelopmental and cognitive delays. Of course, there is also the question of who is most affected, because every year 130 million women give birth and many of these births take place in hot countries, which do not seem to be affected by this.
Extreme heat from climate change can make the brain more vulnerable to damage that can lead to neurodegenerative diseases. Heat also affects the brain barrier, making it more permeable and increasing the risk of toxins, bacteria and viruses reaching brain tissue.
The spread of mosquitoes that transmit diseases such as Zika, chikungunya and dengue can affect fetuses and cause microcephaly. “High temperatures and mild winters mean that the mating season for mosquitoes starts earlier and ends later,” says entomologist Tobias Suter of the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute. Heat waves can affect electrical short circuits in nerve cells, suicide, climate anxiety and the durability of medications needed for neurological diseases. People experience heat in different ways, some are happy with it and some cannot cope. This may be linked to genetic factors that affect the structure of proteins.
Identifying who is at risk and why is essential for building strategies to protect the most vulnerable. This could include early warning systems or compensation for employees who miss work due to heat. Climate change is happening and intensifying. The era of the ‘hot brain’ is just beginning.