High temperatures pose greater risk for pregnant women; new report

CITYnews halifax / By Rachel Morgan

As above normal temperatures and high humidity loom over much of eastern Canada, many are doing all they can to keep cool. But for some vulnerable populations, the hot weather is not just an inconvenience, it’s a danger.

A new report from scientists at the organization Climate Central have found that climate change is increasing the prevalence of what they call “pregnancy heat-risk days”, including in the Maritimes.

“It has overwhelmingly been agreed upon that rising global temperatures and climate change have been caused by the rampant and unrestrained burning of fossil fuels by humans,” Rob Samulack, a registered nurse and chair of RNAO’s Ontario Nurses for the Environment, said in a press release. “This report clearly demonstrates adverse maternal and birth outcomes caused by exposure to abnormally high temperatures during pregnancy, which disproportionately affect the world’s most vulnerable and marginalized populations regardless of where the fossil fuels are burned.”

The researchers classify pregnancy heat-risk days as a day with temperatures warmer than 95 per cent of temperatures observed at a given location — or temperatures above the 95th percentile. Previous research has shows that at these temperatures, there is an increased risk of preterm birth as well as other complications like hypertension, gestational diabetes, maternal hospitalizations, and severe maternal morbidity.

Over the past five years, Canada has, on average, experienced 12 additional pregnancy heat days per year.

In Halifax that number is as high as 14.

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The report notes that is it impossible to disconnect rising temperatures from the climate crisis. By comparing the results to a world without climate change, the report found that 56 per cent of Halifax’s pregnancy heat-risk days have been added as a result of a warming climate.

They are using these new statistics to call for an end to fossil fuel combustion, which has long been known as the main driver of climate change and a factor of many other health risks. The impacts on air quality from the recent wildfires burning across the country is another example of these risks.

“Even a single day of extreme heat can raise the risk of serious pregnancy complications,” Kristina Dahl, VP for Science at Climate Central, said in a press release. “Climate change is increasing extreme heat and stacking the odds against healthy pregnancies worldwide, especially in places where care is already hard to access. The impacts on maternal and infant health are likely to worsen if we don’t stop burning fossil fuels and urgently tackle climate change.”