Extreme Heat Disrupting Pregnancy Care, Raising Health Risks For Newborns: Survey

Extreme heat has been exerting growing pressure on pregnant women, babies and maternity services across the world, a new survey ahead of COP31 has said. This finding comes in a year when 33 countries recorded their hottest July on record, underscoring thegrowing threat that extreme heat poses to health systems and communities globally.The study commissioned by the global charitable foundation, Wellcome, said that 73 per cent of maternal healthcare professionals reported an increase in heat-related cases or complications linked to extreme heat affecting pregnant women.At least 76 per cent reported an increase affecting foetal or newborn health in the last five years, the study said.The report also comes at a time when the UN climate chief warned that extreme heat is increasingly linked to problems like premature births or underweight babies, as Fiji hosted talks ahead of the larger UN-sponsored global climate summit - COP31 - to be held next…