health and wellness

Heat and cold as health hazards

Research shows that both heat waves and cold temperatures significantly stress the cardiovascular system, impacting health amid current climate and energy crises.

Published

4 years ago

December 23, 2022

Daily News Staff

Last Updated on December 28, 2024 by Daily News Staff

Newswise — Both hot and cold environments trigger a stress response in the human body and can lead to cardiovascular problems. Physiologist Justin Lawley from the Department of Sport Science at the University of Innsbruck and colleagues have recently investigated both factors in scientific studies. The results, which were published in the Journals Scientific Reports and Experimental Physiology, are especially interesting in light of the current multiple global crises.

The climate and energy crises are currently among the greatest challenges of our time and are having a direct physical effect on people’s health. For example, the climate crisis is causing more frequent, longer and more intense heat waves, which are responsible for more deaths than natural disasters. Moreover, the energy crisis is causing a rise in energy costs and forcing many households to heat their homes less often or not at all.

The physiological responses to a simulated heat wave and cold ambient temperatures have now been investigated by Justin Lawley, together with his research group, the Laboratory of Exercise and Environmental Physiology, and international scientists in two studies – the focus was on the cardiovascular system. “In both studies, we replicated real-world environmental temperatures the body might be exposed to and were able to show physiological responses that could help explain known seasonal variations in cardiovascular deaths,” explains Lawley.

Heat study

As part of the Horizon 2020 Heat Shield project, Lawley’s group collaborated with colleagues from Slovenia to examine how heat waves affect the health of industrial workers. Seven male participants spent nine consecutive regular workdays in a controlled laboratory setting.

On the first and last three days, normal summer temperatures for Central European conditions ranged from 25.1 to 25.7 degrees during work and 21.8 to 22.8 degrees during rest periods. Days four through six represented the heat wave; during this period, researchers created ambient temperatures between 35.2 and 35.8 degrees during work periods and 25.5 to 27.1 degrees during rest periods including while sleeping at night. During the entire study, participants completed daily tasks to simulate typical industrial work.

“We used a protocol in this study that simulates current heat wave conditions in combination with orthostatic stress, which means changing posture, to determine cardiovascular and thermoregulatory stress in industrial workers,” Lawley describes. The results show that even relatively mild heat waves cause an increase in core and skin temperatures and an increase in skin blood flow. While these physiological reactions help the body from overheating at rest, during standing the body must now defend both internal temperature and maintain blood pressure to prevent fainting, which puts an extra strain on the cardiovascular system.

Interestingly, many of these responses persisted after the heat wave was over, suggesting a residual effect of the heat wave. “These responses reflect the stress on the cardiovascular system that industrial workers face during heat waves, which can lead to heat illness, fainting and even potentially death due to accidents or serious medical complications in persons with underlying cardiovascular disease,” Lawley points out.

Cold study

In another study, Lawley, along with a team of eleven researchers, examined the impact of mild cold exposure on the cardiovascular system, with a specific focus on what mechanisms are responsible for the increase in blood pressure. In addition to researchers from Innsbruck, scientists from Great Britain and Canada were also involved.

Since preventing a rise in blood pressure in the cold is important, the study aimed to examine if the rise in vessel resistance (i.e. vasoconstriction) is due to a change in blood flow in the skeletal muscles or simply the skin. In a laboratory at the Department of Sport Science at the University of Innsbruck, the researchers cooled the skin temperature of 34 test subjects from a normal 32 to 34 degrees to about 27 degrees with ten degrees cold air – on one occasion the entire body was cooled, on another only the face was cooled.

“We observed that when the entire surface of the body is cooled, blood pressure increases mainly due to an increase in vascular resistance of the skin, although there was also a slight reflex increase in resistance of the blood vessels inside the skeletal muscle. However, importantly, when only the face was cooled, we saw a very similar increase in blood pressure that was due to a reflex increase in vascular resistance of the skin throughout the whole body,” Lawley describes.

Get More From A Face Cleanser And Spa-like Massage

Thus, the team was able to show that the mechanism(s) responsible for the rise in blood pressure during cold exposure depends on which parts of the body are cold. These data are important to educate the population about preventing the potential negative consequences of cold exposure because contrary to the perception of many, cold is even more dangerous to the body than heat.

“It doesn’t take sub-zero temperatures – as you might think – to cause serious reactions in the body, which will become common for many people unable to heat their homes during the energy crisis. While people typically know to wear warm clothing to protect the skin of their body, arms and legs, we were able to show that protecting the face is equally important even in a mild ambient temperature of ten degrees,” Lawley continues.

Extreme effects

Both studies show that climatic conditions can have extreme effects on our cardiovascular system. While negative health aspects triggered by heat waves will increase due to the climate crisis, it is particularly surprising that even cold temperatures around 10 degrees can have significant negative effects on our cardiovascular system even in young people who were part of these studies. Future studies extending these findings to our ageing population and those with pre-existing medical conditions will certainly help mitigate the risk of these new environmental challenges.

Link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-24216-3

Source: University of Innsbruck

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Research Reveals Persistent Racial Disparities in Stroke Treatment and Outcomes

Published

1 day ago

August 3, 2026

Daily News Staff

woman comforting another woman. Stroke treatment. — Photo by RDNE Stock project on Pexels.com

Three new studies shared this week at the Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery (SNIS) 23rd Annual Meeting deliver a clear message: stroke care in the U.S. is improving, but those gains are not reaching everyone equally. Researchers found persistent disparities tied to race, geography, and socioeconomic status—factors that can shape whether a patient receives advanced treatment, how quickly they reach specialized care, and ultimately, whether they survive.

Stroke remains one of the nation’s leading causes of death and long-term disability. In recent years, breakthroughs in emergency response systems and minimally invasive procedures have expanded what’s possible in the critical first hours after a stroke. But the latest findings suggest that access to those life-saving advances still depends too heavily on who you are and where you live.

Study 1: Treatment gaps widen as strokes get more severe

The first study, “Racial Disparities in Endovascular Thrombectomy Widen with Stroke Severity: A National Inpatient Sample Analysis,” examined more than 325,000 acute ischemic stroke patients treated at U.S. teaching hospitals between 2018 and 2022.

The focus was endovascular thrombectomy (EVT), a minimally invasive procedure in which specialists remove a clot from a blocked artery in the brain. EVT can be a game-changer for eligible patients—but researchers found Black patients were less likely than white patients to receive it across all levels of stroke severity.

What stood out most: the disparity grew as stroke severity increased. At a National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score of 20, the predicted probability of receiving EVT was:

33% for white men
32% for white women
28% for Black men
26% for Black women

Co-first author Muhammed Amir Essibayi, MD, MSc, FRCP, noted that timely access becomes even more critical as severity rises—yet the treatment gap becomes more pronounced. The study also highlighted an intersectional pattern, with Black women consistently least likely to receive EVT.

Study 2: Hemorrhagic stroke deaths are falling—but disparities persist

The second study, “Reducing Inequalities in Stroke Events-Hemorrhagic Disparities (RISE-HD): A 10-year Statewide Analysis of Social Determinants of Mortality in Hemorrhagic Stroke,” analyzed more than 120,000 patients hospitalized with hemorrhagic stroke in Florida between 2013 and 2024.

There was good news: mortality rates declined significantly over the decade, suggesting real progress in stroke systems and hospital care.

But after adjusting for age, sex, and comorbidities, disparities remained. Black patients had higher odds of in-hospital mortality than white patients. Higher mortality was also associated with:

Living in rural areas
Having Medicaid or other non-commercial insurance

Researchers also found regional differences across Florida, pointing to uneven access to specialized stroke care.

Primary author Natália Vasconcellos, MD, MSc, emphasized that improving outcomes for everyone will require addressing barriers to specialized stroke systems—especially in underserved communities.

Study 3: The “Stroke Belt” has two different access problems

The third study, “Dual Pathways to Hemorrhagic Stroke Mortality Across the U.S. Stroke Belt: Rural Neurointerventional Isolation and Urban Structural Vulnerability,” looked at hemorrhagic stroke mortality across 433 counties in the “Stroke Belt,” a region long associated with higher stroke rates and worse outcomes.

Researchers compared factors linked to mortality in rural versus urban counties, including:

Distance to the nearest Comprehensive Stroke Center
Community-level socioeconomic disadvantage
Racial and economic segregation
HIV burden

They found the drivers of mortality differed sharply by setting:

In rural counties, longer travel times to Comprehensive Stroke Centers were more strongly associated with higher mortality.
In urban counties, racialized economic segregation and HIV burden were more strongly associated with poorer outcomes—even when specialized care was geographically closer.

Dylan Yates, a medical student at Tulane University School of Medicine, summarized the takeaway: the neurointerventional access gap in the Stroke Belt is “not one problem, it is two.” Solutions need to match the reality on the ground—strengthening transfer networks and specialty connections in rural areas, while addressing structural disadvantage and underinvestment in urban communities.

What to watch for: where the system can improve

Across all three studies, the common thread is that medical innovation alone doesn’t guarantee equitable outcomes. Researchers pointed toward targeted interventions that could help close the gap, including:

More consistent, equitable treatment pathways for advanced stroke procedures like EVT
Stronger stroke transfer networks to reduce delays—especially in rural regions
Expanded access to specialty stroke care and Comprehensive Stroke Centers
Community-level investment and structural reforms in underserved urban neighborhoods

For patients and families, these findings also reinforce the importance of recognizing stroke symptoms quickly and calling 911 immediately. Time is brain—yet the system must ensure that “time” and “access” don’t vary based on race, ZIP code, or insurance status.Source: Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery (SNIS), July

If You’re Feeling Stressed by Pricey Meds, Pharmacists Can Help

Stressed by Pricey Meds? If your wallet is feeling the squeeze of prescription drug costs as other living expenses like grocery and energy prices rise, you’re not alone. That’s where a powerful ally can help you manage drug costs: a health-system pharmacist.

Published

4 days ago

July 31, 2026

Daily News Staff

If You’re Feeling Stressed by Pricey Meds, Pharmacists Can Help

(Feature Impact) If your wallet is feeling the squeeze of prescription drug costs as other living expenses like grocery and energy prices rise, you’re not alone.

More people are worrying about affording essential medications these days. In fact, more than 40% of adults said they skipped doses or didn’t fill prescriptions in the past year due to cost, according to a KFF Health survey.

People who take multiple drugs to manage chronic conditions often feel this pinch even more severely. They’re also more likely to make more frequent visits to their clinic or health system for care. That’s where a powerful ally can help them manage their drug costs: a health-system pharmacist.

These medication experts work side-by-side with the clinicians who prescribe drugs in health care practices – and sometimes prescribe medications themselves. Their deep knowledge can help people get the most out of the drugs they take.

“Pharmacists really know the full picture of medications, including pricing, insurance coverage, alternative therapies and potential side effects,” said Lindsey Amerine, PharmD, chief pharmacy officer for the Cleveland Clinic. “That’s why it’s helpful to not only count on your doctor to diagnose your condition and prescribe therapies, but also your pharmacist to optimize your medications.”

Get a Comprehensive Review of Your Medications

Asking the pharmacist on your health-system care team to go over your medications may reveal opportunities to save, Amerine said. Health-system pharmacists are uniquely qualified to provide this service because they keep close track of medication costs as well as approvals of new drugs and how those compare to older options.

A full review might reveal:

Drugs once needed may not be as useful anymore. People often continue taking medications unaware that something new could offer greater benefits or their condition no longer requires the same therapy.
Changes in your condition may mean you could safely take a lower dosage of a drug, thereby reducing costs.
There may be less costly alternatives that would work as well such as a generic or older medication.

Get Help Exploring Discount Options

You’ve probably heard about programs that can help lower prescription costs, including discount and patient assistance programs. Pharmacists can help you understand how to navigate these programs and access potential discount programs and opportunities, Amerine said. Here’s how:

Pharmacists can guide you through discount programs your health system offers.
They can check your eligibility for drug maker discounts and help you understand how those discounts work with your insurance, especially if you have a high-deductible plan.
Pharmacists can help you navigate the various prescription cost-savings programs and how they work.
They can also help you learn about patient assistance programs that provide free or discounted medications to people who cannot afford them.

Medications are a vital part of your health care. Before you try to stretch a costly medicine or give it up altogether, talk to the medication expert on your health care team: your health-system pharmacist. For more information, visit yourpharmacist.org.

Why It Pays to Talk Meds with a Pharmacist

“My doctor prescribed it, so I must need it.” Often this is true, but not always. People sometimes take drugs longer than they need to, at doses higher than necessary or that may interact with other medications.

Just as you’d see a heart specialist about an odd pulse rate, it can help to see a pharmacist – your medication specialist – to discuss your prescriptions.

Of all health care professionals, pharmacists have the deepest knowledge of drug interactions and safety issues. They’re experts on how the effectiveness of different medications – brand name and generic – compare. They also closely track changes in prices and know when a drug’s cost has dropped or if an effective, less costly alternative is available.

Health-system pharmacists’ expertise is especially helpful for those with multiple chronic conditions who typically take several medications with more benefits, costs and side effects to balance.

Talking with a pharmacist can ensure your prescriptions are best for you and that you have access to the most affordable options. collect?v=1&tid=UA 482330 7&cid=1955551e 1975 5e52 0cdb 8516071094cd&sc=start&t=pageview&dl=http%3A%2F%2Ftrack.familyfeatures track

SOURCE:

American Society of Health-System Pharmacists

Daily News Staff