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Report: Heat deaths are underreported

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Illinois

The footnote reads: “Due to an inherent delay in the reporting of official heat fatalities in some jurisdictions, this number will likely rise in subsequent updates.”

* From Harvest Public Media, a collaboration of public media newsrooms in the Midwest…

Heat is the deadliest climate-driven disaster in the U.S. according to the National Weather Service, killing more people last year than hurricanes, tornadoes and floods combined. But experts say official estimates of deaths due to hot temperatures are likely low.

“This is a country-wide and even a worldwide phenomenon of the undercounting of heat deaths,” said Daniel Vecellio, an assistant professor at the University of Nebraska at Omaha who studies the impact of climate on human health. […]

Even official data tracking heat deaths can reveal reporting gaps. The National Weather Service reported 207 heat fatalities in 2023, while the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says approximately 1,220 people die from heat every year.

The NWS also reports state-specific numbers. In 2023, the agency does not list any heat deaths from Missouri, but the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services said 34 people died from heat-related illness that year. A spokesperson for Missouri’s DHSS said it may not be possible to compare numbers between agencies because of “differences in case ascertainment and classification.” […]

Despite the worsening heat, Vecellio said scientists are still trying to determine if there is a direct link between climate change and an increase of heat deaths. That’s in part because as climate change brings more dangerous heat, people are also putting more adaptation measures in place. More people are installing air conditioning, several states have adopted worker protections, and there’s an increasing awareness of the dangers of heat, Vecellio said.

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Aug 28, 24 @ 10:20 am

Comments

dehydration is one huge contributing factor. in the heat and with AC and in the winter. gotta hydrate. if you are tired it is probably dehydration. sadly that iced tea I love won’t do it. caffeine dehydrates. water water water.

Comment by Amalia Wednesday, Aug 28, 24 @ 11:19 am
“caffeine dehydrates”

Ah, the old urban legends still persist. Up there with “put your coat on or you will get sick” as one of the more persistent myths.

It probably sticks around as a myth because while it is true that caffeine is a mild diuretic, nobody actually consumes raw caffeine by itself. It is consumed with water which negates the effects of caffeine alone on total body water and in many cases will provide net hydration.

Core body temperature is far more of a factor than caffeine. The single biggest change a person can make to protect themselves is to get as few as 30min of exposure to air conditioning. Even a small break from an increased core temperature makes a large difference. It is the stress on the body over time caused by an increased core temperature which is damaging to the body.

Don’t just take my word for it though
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4725310/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3886980/

Comment by TheInvisibleMan Wednesday, Aug 28, 24 @ 11:47 am
weird. hear that caffeine dehydrates all the time on the news! thanks for the links. in any event water water water

Comment by Amalia Wednesday, Aug 28, 24 @ 12:11 pm
===Vecellio said scientists are still trying to determine if there is a direct link between climate change and an increase of heat deaths.===

This is a loaded statement. A “direct link” is a different standard than contributing to heat related. Never mind whether or not climate change is causing the record temperatures we continue to see every summer is a moot point.

=== caffeine dehydrates. water water water. ===

There are a lot of factors in heat related deaths. Staying hydrated is helpful, but dehydration isn’t the cause of the increase in heat related deaths. It might be a factor, but there are climate factors where sweating simply isn’t enough to cool the body and your core temperatures continue to rise.

That’s why we need strong worker protections from heat, that’s why we need more cooling centers, that’s why we need more shelter for those who don’t have access to it. Just drinking enough water doesn’t solve the problem.

Some people just don’t have anywhere they can go to cool off. Some employers will threaten people with termination if they take a break to cool down or just flat out refuse to provide any location in the work place where the employee can cool down. Shade also isn’t any cooler than the ambient air temperature.

Comment by Candy Dogood Wednesday, Aug 28, 24 @ 12:30 pm
==There are a lot of factors in heat related deaths. Staying hydrated is helpful, but dehydration isn’t the cause of the increase in heat related deaths. It might be a factor, but there are climate factors where sweating simply isn’t enough to cool the body and your core temperatures continue to rise.==

Spot on. People aren’t really dying (in big numbers) because they are dehydrated. Extreme heat and the way the body copes can lead to organ failure and heart attacks because blood flow is being redirected to help cool the body. People’s bodies are simply too hot for too long. Simply drinking water isn’t a mechanism to cool you down.

=Shade also isn’t any cooler than the ambient air temperature.=

True. But body temps will drop if not exposed to direct sunlight and the heat associated with being in the blazing sun.

If you ever see someone suffering from heat exhaustion or stroke, call 911, and try to get that person somewhere cooler, the shade, a car with AC, a building with AC, in the short term.

Steps being taken in places like Phoenix where they deal with these emergency calls are often packing what is essentially a body bag with ice and getting the person inside of it to rapidly cool their core temp.

Comment by Cool Papa Bell Wednesday, Aug 28, 24 @ 2:28 pm