One in five children now live in parts of the world that are experiencing double the number of extremely heat days per year, as compared to six decades ago, according to a new analysis by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). 

The analysis comparing average temperatures during the 1960s to the period 2020-2024, highlights a dramatic increase in the frequency of extreme heat days, where temperatures exceeded 35° Celsius (95° Fahrenheit), as well as in the frequency of heat waves. UNICEF defines a heatwave as a period of three days or more of above-average heat.

Heatwave duration, severity, and frequency all intensified since 1960, with more than half of the world’s children 18 and under now experiencing twice as many heatwaves as 60 years ago. 

In the worst affected regions, two-thirds of children in West and Central Africa and 28% of children in the Middle East and North Africa now experience three times as many heatwaves, in comparison to children growing up in the 1960s. In Latin America and the Caribbean, nearly 57 million children – 60% – are now exposed to twice the number of heatwaves. And in the United States, 36 million children – more than half of that population – are exposed to double the number of heatwaves in comparison to their counterparts in the 1960s. 

Hottest summer days now seem normal

“The hottest summer days now seem normal,” remarked UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell in a press statement. “Extreme heat is on the rise, disrupting children’s health, well-being, and daily routines.”

The report’s findings are particularly alarming for children in 16 countries, which now see over a month more of  extremely hot days compared to the 1960s. Among those are children in war-stricken Sudan.

“[The analysis] has a real relevance to Sudan, where 80% of children now face double the number of heat waves that their grandparents did,” said UNICEF spokesperson James Elder at a Tuesday press conference at the UN in Geneva.

Most of the 16 flagged countries are in Africa: Senegal, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Senegal all struggle with rising levels of heat, while Tunisia and Paraguay also made the list. For example, children in South Sudan face an average of 165 extremely hot days annually this decade, up from 110 days in the 1960s. In Paraguay, the number of such days has doubled from 36 to 71.

Health effects of  extreme heat on children

With climate change upending global temperature norms, the burden of extreme heat on children, as well as pregnant women, can often be as severe as the impacts on other adults. That’s despite the fact that adults often get most of the attention insofar as they suffer from more chronic respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, which are exacerbated by heat. 

“Children are not little adults. Their bodies are far more vulnerable to extreme heat. Young bodies heat up faster, and cool down more slowly. Extreme heat is especially risky for babies due to their faster heart rate, so rising temperatures are even more alarming for children,” Russell said.

The analysis links heat exposure to a range of adverse health outcomes, including pregnancy complications, low birth weight, preterm birth, child malnutrition, heat-related illnesses, and increased vulnerability to infectious diseases such as malaria and dengue. Additionally, extreme heat has been shown to negatively impact neurodevelopment, mental health, and overall well-being.

Compounded by other climate related hazards

The impact of extreme heat on child health is compounded by the broader effects of climate-related hazards on food and water security, infrastructure, education, and displacement. These challenges are further exacerbated by existing vulnerabilities such as socioeconomic status, gender, location, and underlying health conditions. 

Heat interventions are often out of reach financially – heat relief like air conditioning is costly. Many experts point to urban planning and building design to alleviate extreme heat. Narrow streets, green rooftops, and cul-de-sacs are all design techniques aimed at keeping buildings cool.

With the upcoming submission of new Nationally Defined Contributions (NDC 3.0) under the Paris Agreement, UNICEF is urging governments and the private sector to take bold climate action.

West and Central Africa heats up

Most notably, children in West Africa and Central Africa are facing the highest exposure to extremely hot days and the most significant increases in the past 60 years, warned UNICEF in a statement. 123 million children—39% of the region’s youth—experience extreme heat for at least a third of the year, equating to 95 days or more. In countries like Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Sudan, children are living through 195 to 212 days of extreme heat annually.

“Almost 40 per cent of children in the region live through extreme heat for more than one third of the year, the equivalent of at least four months in temperatures above 35 degrees [Celsius]. In many countries where infrastructure often isn’t available to manage this level of heat, there is a huge impact on children especially at school. The heat means many children in schools with overcrowded classrooms and inadequate ventilation or other means to manage extreme heat, get sick, are unable to study, play, or thrive,” says UNICEF Regional Climate Specialist in West and Central Africa David Knaute. 

“Just earlier this year the region suffered an extended heatwave, affecting several countries in the Sahel, where we saw the risks posed to vulnerable populations, especially children. Young people in Casamance, Senegal, told me how they had suffered or witnessed dehydration, dizziness, and exhaustion as a result of the extreme heat.”

Image Credits: © UNICEF/UN0836989/Naftalin, UNICEF, © UNICEF Cambodia/2019/Fani Llaurado, © UNICEF/UN0794414/Dejongh.