Since the heat wave which hit Europe in 2003 and which caused the premature death of 70,000 people, the health authorities have been trying to limit excess mortality by calling on those most at risk to be vigilant in the event of high temperatures.
But according to a study by the Institute for Global Health in Barcelona, this message of vigilance should be addressed primarily to women, who are more likely than men to die prematurely during heat waves.
This August 22 saw the fall of records dating from the 2003 heat wave, such as in Orange in the Vaucluse with 42.7°C! In the Drôme, it was up to 43.5°C! New records to come on Wednesday & Thursday… pic.twitter.com/w9bjSlQNId
— Weather Express (@WeatherExpress) August 22, 2023
56% more heat-related deaths among women
In their study, the researchers quantified the heat-related mortality burden during the summer of 2022, the hottest season on record in Europe since 2003, by analyzing Eurostat’s mortality database.
“We estimated that 61,672 deaths were heat-related in Europe between May 30 and September 4, 2022. Italy, Greece, Spain and Portugal presented the heat-related death rates. the highest heat” underline the researchers.
Their analyzes also showed that there was overall 56% more heat-related deaths among women than among men, And that the two most vulnerable age groups are those of women aged 65 to 79 and women aged over 80 (+ 27%).
The frequency of heat waves is increasing
Météo France has been recording heat waves since 1947. Since then, they have recorded 46, the last dating from August 2022. Their statistics show that :
- There have been 4 times more heat waves in the past 38 years than the previous 38.
- The occurrence of heat waves in France, which was on average one summer every 5 years before 1989, has become annual since the year 2000.
- In 2023, the risk of experiencing a heat wave as severe as in 2003 has been multiplied by 10.
“In the absence of adaptation to future summer warming, and extrapolating, we could expect heat-related mortality of 68,116 deaths on average each summer by 2030, 94,363 deaths by 2040 and 120,610 deaths by ‘by 2050’ insist researchers from the Institute for Global Health in Barcelona.
Sources:
Heat-related mortality in Europe during the summer of 2022Nature medicine, July 2023
20 years ago, the 2003 heat wave, Weather in France, August 2023
