A recent study featured in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) delivers concerning insights on climate change. It indicates that by the close of this century, due to the effects of climate change, approximately 2.2 billion individuals residing in the Indus Valley of India and Pakistan may confront extreme heat conditions surpassing human endurance thresholds.
This research underscores that any elevation in global temperatures exceeding 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels will lead to profoundly adverse impacts on human health worldwide.
The human body has a limited capacity to withstand specific combinations of heat and humidity, making individuals susceptible to severe heat-related health issues such as heatstroke or cardiac events.
The researchers also noted that these regions are predominantly in lower-to-middle-income countries, meaning that many of the affected individuals may lack access to amenities like air conditioning or effective means to alleviate the detrimental health effects of extreme heat.
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