Heatwaves can kill in at least 27 ways

Nov 13, 2017 06:00 am

Heatwaves are more lethal than you may think.

They can kill in at least 27 ways, from damage of cells to leakage of intestines and to blood clots that can lead to heart, brain, liver and kidney failure, putting millions of lives at risk, a University of Hawaii at Manoa study found.

Global temperatures are rising at a record pace, moving nearer a ceiling set by some 200 nations to limit global warming, and the human body is more sensitive to heat than previously thought.

Rising heat is underestimated as a threat because it is an invisible and hard-to-document disaster that claims lives largely behind closed doors, experts said.

Victims - the elderly, very young, poor or already unhealthy - often die at home and not just of heat stroke but of existing health problems aggravated by heat and dehydration. - REUTERS