Heating and Cardiovascular Health: The Dose Makes the Poison

Global warming, primarily driven by human activities, has triggered profound alterations in the climate system, including a marked rise in extreme temperatures. Climate change represents one of the most pressing challenges to public health, as global surface temperatures continue to increase and extreme heat events become more frequent and intense.1,2 From a physiological perspective, a recent multilevel meta-analysis synthesized evidence from over 400 laboratory-based heat exposure studies, demonstrating exacerbated elevations in heart rate and cardiac output, alongside attenuated reductions in systolic blood pressure, in heat-exposed individuals across various settings.