The World Health Organization (WHO) and climate experts have warned that prolonged heatwaves are no longer a temporary inconvenience but a serious and potentially fatal threat to human health.
According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), the danger extends beyond immediate impacts such as heatstroke and severe dehydration.
Prolonged exposure can worsen chronic conditions like heart and respiratory diseases, with symptoms, and even deaths, sometimes occurring days after a heatwave begins.
French Health Minister Catherine Vautrin urged vigilance in the days following extreme heat, noting that its effects on the body are not always immediate.
While earlier studies offered mixed findings on the impact of heatwave duration, with 2011 and 2018 research suggesting only limited cumulative effects, newer studies are revealing broader risks.
Reports published in 2024 in The Lancet Countdown and Sleep Medicine described rising temperatures as a “global threat to sleep,” hampering the body’s ability to recover.
The warnings recall Europe’s 2003 heatwave, which killed more than 70,000 people, underscoring the urgency of addressing extreme heat in the context of accelerating climate change.
