How climate change is increasing complication risks for pregnant women
Early season heat waves gripping the Central and Southern United States are bringing attention to the health dangers of high temperatures during pregnancy.
While extreme heat can be dangerous for anybody, pregnant women are particularly at risk — and according to a report released last week, climate change is making things worse.
The analysis, from the nonprofit Climate Central, found that climate change nearly doubled the average number of "pregnancy heat-risk days" — extremely hot days linked to an increased risk of preterm birth — in the U.S. from 2020 to 2024.
"These are the days when pregnant women are at increased risk for a number of different complications — so heat stroke, heat exhaustion," Dr. Céline Gounder, CBS News medical contributor and editor-at-large for public health at KFF Health News, said on "CBS Mornings Plus" Tuesday. "If you have these kinds of symptoms in a pregnant woman, it's even more concerning, because you can have other complications like preterm birth."
Heat can have such an impact because pregnancy puts major stress on the heart.
"You're more likely to get dehydrated during pregnancy. You have an increase in your blood volume during pregnancy, and so being dehydrated, being exposed to extra heat, you're working that much harder to keep yourself and your baby cool," Gounder said.
While it's important to be aware of temperatures throughout an entire pregnancy, Gounder said it's especially important during the third trimester, which can be hardest on the body. It's also when the risk of extreme heat causes the most number of complications, she added.
Finding ways to stay cool should also be top of mind, Gounder said, especially as resources related to heat safety are being cut.
"You're going to have to stay on top of this a whole lot more, because some of the surveillance that was being done by NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), by the CDC, is now being cut by the Trump administration," Gounder said. "That is part of their job — to do the surveillance and let people know and to have those cooling centers open and ready to welcome people."
In February, more than 800 employees were dismissed from NOAA, the nation's primary hub for weather and climate information that is considered the authority on forecasting, storm tracking and climate monitoring. The job cuts were part of a federal cost-cutting initiative by the Trump administration and the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.
Also under the DOGE initiative were cuts to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, including large agencies like the CDC, the nation's public health agency, which is responsible for protecting Americans from disease outbreaks and other public health threats, tracking health trends and developing health and safety guidelines.
To help stay cool, Gounder suggests not over exerting yourself on hot days, finding a shady place to take breaks when outside and seeking spaces like a public library if you need to cool down further.
Sara Moniuszko
Sara Moniuszko is a health and lifestyle reporter at CBSNews.com. Previously, she wrote for USA Today, where she was selected to help launch the newspaper's wellness vertical. She now covers breaking and trending news for CBS News' HealthWatch.
contributed to this report.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
27 minutes ago
- New York Times
What Happens to Vaccines Now?
The U.S. health secretary's dismissal of an influential vaccine advisory committee this week sowed uncertainty about the future of vaccine recommendations nationwide. On Wednesday, Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced eight new members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which makes recommendations that are adopted by doctors, pharmacists, insurers and patients. His nominations included a physician who previously served on the committee, a scientist who has spread unfounded claims about Covid-19 vaccines and an epidemiologist who denounced Covid lockdowns. Mr. Kennedy's decision to overhaul the committee raised concerns among some medical experts, given his history of vaccine skepticism. For decades, ACIP has been a 'very important system to ensuring the health and safety of the country,' said Dr. Nancy Bennett, an emeritus professor of medicine and public health sciences at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry and a former chair of the committee. 'It's hard to know what this huge disruption in the system will cause in the future,' Dr. Bennett said. How does the committee shape vaccine policy? Since 1964, ACIP has issued recommendations on the use of new and existing vaccines. ACIP usually meets three times a year, in discussions that are open to the public. The committee's voting members, who are medical experts with significant expertise in vaccines, virology and public health, are typically appointed by the health secretary for four-year terms. (The committee also has one consumer representative with an understanding of the social and community aspects of vaccination programs.) The group discusses and votes on key questions about vaccines, such as who should receive Covid boosters or at what ages children should receive certain shots. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Washington Post
36 minutes ago
- Washington Post
RFK Jr. picks new members of influential vaccine committee after purge
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. named eight people to the influential federal panel that recommends vaccines to Americans days after he purged the entire membership of the group. His picks for the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices include a well-known pediatric infectious diseases expert and at least two people who have criticized the use of mRNA coronavirus vaccines. Some of the more notable selections include Martin Kulldorff, the co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration, which called for herd immunity through mass covid infection in 2020, and Vicky Pebsworth, who has been listed on the board of the nation's oldest anti-vaccine group.
New York Times
37 minutes ago
- New York Times
Kennedy Announces Eight New Members of C.D.C. Vaccine Advisory Panel
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday named eight doctors and researchers, including two prominent critics of federal scientists and the Biden administration's Covid vaccine policies, to replace roughly half the members he fired from an expert panel that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Mr. Kennedy made the announcement Wednesday on the social media platform X, two days after he fired all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. 'The slate includes highly credentialed scientists, leading public-health experts, and some of America's most accomplished physicians,' he wrote. In a post on X late Tuesday night, Mr. Kennedy promised he would not appoint 'ideological anti-vaxxers.' But the appointments of at least two of the new members — Martin Kulldorff and Dr. Robert Malone — are likely to draw an uproar from pro-vaccine groups. Both were highly critical of President Joseph R. Biden Jr.'s coronavirus vaccine policies during the pandemic. Dr. Kulldorff, a Swedish biostatistician and former Harvard professor who in the past advised the C.D.C. on vaccine safety, opposed vaccine mandates. He came to prominence in 2020 as a co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration, a document that opposed lockdowns and drew intense backlash from Dr. Anthony S. Fauci and other public health leaders, who branded it dangerous. Dr. Malone, who played an early role in mRNA research and has claimed to be the inventor of the technology, became a right-wing star after a 2021 appearance on 'The Joe Rogan Experience' that exposed both him and Mr. Rogan to criticism that they had spread misinformation. This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
