Latest news with #NehalVijaybhaiBhil
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Researchers turn to surprisingly simple method to combat deadly heat waves — here's how it works
Thanks to a team of researchers, 400 households in Ahmedabad are getting "cool roofs" to combat excessively high temperatures. Ahmedabad is one of India's hottest cities, with as many as 85 days of extreme heat each year, according to CSE data shared by The Times of India. A team from Germany's University of Heidelberg received funding from the U.K.-based Wellcome Trust — a charity dedicated to solving global health crises — for the roof project. Wellcome Trust's grants have also funded projects to determine links between Alzheimer's and menopause and to use reverse genetics to better understand chronic conditions. The trial in Ahmedabad aims to determine how high temperatures affect overall health. To test this, each home in the study had its roof painted with a white reflective coating, known as a "cool roof," reported Reuters. These roofs reflect the sun's rays instead of absorbing them and heating homes. Ahmedabad is known for having extreme heat spells, with many days from April to June exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit, per Weather Spark. While much of India is hot, especially during the summer months, highly populated cities like Ahmedabad tend to be more vulnerable to high temperatures. The heat island effect causes daytime temperatures to trend higher in urban areas due to heat-absorbing materials and fewer trees and water to cool things off. Activities like burning dirty fuels and cutting down forests have sped up the rise in temperatures around the globe. These human-driven actions release large amounts of planet-warming gases such as carbon dioxide, which trap heat in the atmosphere. Places like Ahmedabad tend to feel the effects of these activities even more than other areas. A 2018 study published in the Scientific Reports journal noted that if global temperatures rise by just 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) India could see six times as many heatwaves. Extreme heat in Ahmedabad and other regions in India has increased hospitalizations and deaths. A 2024 study published in the Dialogues in Health journaI found that extreme heat in India contributed to cardiac, skin, and vector-borne diseases in addition to hyperthermia, heat strokes, and respiratory problems. Do you think your home has good insulation? Definitely It's just all right It's good in some rooms Not at all Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. The "cool roof" project is designed to help researchers understand how much of a difference a cooler environment can make on health. Reuters reported that the project will last for one year, with researchers collecting health and environmental information from participants and non-participants to compare notes. But some residents are already noticing a difference. "My refrigerator doesn't heat up anymore and the house feels cooler," resident Nehal Vijaybhai Bhil told Reuters. "I sleep so much better and my electricity bill is down." By cooling down homes, Ahmedabad residents could see fewer health-related issues. And in low-income areas of the city with limited or no access to air conditioning, staying cooler without extra appliances can be life-saving. Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the latest innovations improving our lives and shaping our future, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
South China Morning Post
10-03-2025
- Health
- South China Morning Post
Indian slums get cool roofs to beat the summer heat
In the informal settlements of India 's western Gujarat state, hundreds of roofs have been painted in a reflective, white coating over the last two months to try to keep their occupants cooler as the hottest time of year approaches. Advertisement The effort, which involves 400 households in Ahmedabad, is part of a global scientific trial to study how indoor heat affects people's health and economic outcomes in developing countries – and how 'cool roofs' might help. 'Traditionally, home is where people have come to find shelter and respite against external elements,' said Aditi Bunker, an epidemiologist at the University of Heidelberg in Switzerland who is leading the project, supported by the UK-based Wellcome Trust. 'Now, we're in this position where people are living in precarious housing conditions, where the thing that was supposed to be protecting them is actually increasing their exposure to heat.' Nehal Vijaybhai Bhil, whose one-room house's rooftop has been coated with liquid-applied membrane, cooks in the kitchen at a slum in Ahmedabad, India, on March 7. Photo: Reuters As climate change has made India's summers more extreme, Ahmedabad has suffered temperatures in excess of 46 degrees Celsius (115 degrees Fahrenheit) in recent years. Advertisement In the Vanzara Vas slum in the Narol area of the city, which has more than 2,000 dwellings, most of them airless, one-room homes, residents who are part of the project, such as Nehal Vijaybhai Bhil, already notice a difference.
