Just three days after Mother's Day, a U.S. non-profit is working to shed light on the ways in which sweltering temperatures can affect pregnant women in Victoria and beyond.

On May 14, Climate Central, which works to communicate climate change science and solutions to the public and decision-makers, released a report highlighting the risks pregnant women brave in the face of extreme heat.

香蕉视频直播淓xtreme heat presents dangerous risks to global maternal health and birth outcomes, and it香蕉视频直播檚 becoming more frequent and intense due to climate change,香蕉视频直播� reads the nine-page report.  

Drawing on daily temperature data from 940 cities and 247 countries and territories, the non-profit calculated the rise of 香蕉视频直播減regnancy heat-risk days香蕉视频直播� between 2020 and 2024.  

香蕉视频直播淧regnancy heat-risk days have maximum temperatures warmer than 95 per cent of temperatures observed at a given location 香蕉视频直播� a threshold associated with an increased risk of preterm birth,香蕉视频直播� reads the report.  

Stifling conditions are also linked to higher rates of hypertension, gestational diabetes, stillbirths and maternal hospitalization and morbidity. 

The analysis, which the non-profit began in March, found that during the past five years, climate change has at least doubled the average annual number of days that are dangerously hot for pregnant women in nearly 90 per cent of the countries and territories and 63 per cent of cities.

Victoria saw an average of 12 additional pregnancy heat-risk days each year, with climate change accounting for 52 per cent of them. Vancouver logged two fewer days, and B.C. recorded 13 香蕉视频直播� 45 per cent of which Climate Central attributed to climate change.

Regions with limited access to health care, including the Caribbean, Central and South America, the Pacific Islands, Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, recorded the greatest increases.  

Bethany Ricker, a family doctor in Nanaimo and member of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, knows firsthand the effects extreme heat can have on pregnant women. She recalls having to rush to a C-section for a mother with urgently high blood pressure 香蕉视频直播� a side-effect of exposure to extreme heat.

香蕉视频直播淭he main takeaway from the research is that extreme heat is a dangerous health risk for pregnant people and newborns and that we are seeing more days of extreme heat now due to climate change, which is caused by human activity,香蕉视频直播� she said.  

The doctor hopes the research will help the non-profit raise awareness about climate change and its negative effects. 

香蕉视频直播淚 hope that people have a greater recognition that climate change ... has a huge impact on our health,香蕉视频直播� she said. 香蕉视频直播淭his isn香蕉视频直播檛 something that is faraway and intangible 香蕉视频直播� climate change is something ... that does affect our health on a regular basis and that can put people through scary and difficult situations, as well as increase the cost on our health-care system.香蕉视频直播� 

Kristina Dahl, the vice-president for science at Climate Central, expressed a similar sentiment. 

香蕉视频直播淲e thought that looking at this connection and thinking about just how much climate change is increasing pregnancy-related risks would be a powerful way to connect with people,香蕉视频直播� she said. 香蕉视频直播淲e also hope that people see this and ... start thinking about the risks that they face and ways that they can protect themselves."