Rising temperatures could boost pregnancy risks worldwide — here's how

Rising temperatures around the globe are contributing to a range of health risks, from infectious disease to food insecurity and wildfire smoke .

Extreme heat is another major public health concern, as climate change drives up both average temperatures and the frequency of extremely hot days.

This August was the world's hottest on record , and it drove upticks in heat-related emergency visits and deaths in various U.S. states.

Hotter weather is expected to pose dangerous health risks for millions, and pregnant people are especially vulnerable to its impacts, experts caution.

"Pregnant people are physiologically more vulnerable to heat," Dr.

Susanna Esposito , a pediatrician at the University of Parma in Italy, told Live Science.

"Climate adaptation should treat pregnant people as a priority population." Extreme heat is linked to adverse birth outcomes that can be fatal for both mothers and newborns.

Heat can also hinder fetuses' development, contributing to long-term health and cognitive effects.

Scientists and public health experts are working to identify the thresholds between safe and dangerous heat for maternal and prenatal health.

As the planet warms, how will that affect the risks associated with pregnancy? And how can those risks be countered? Low birth weight When the body tries to cool down, blood moves to the extremities to dissipate heat through the skin's surface.

Some studies suggest that, in a pregnant person, this may reduce blood flow to the placenta, which in turn reduces the organ's supply of oxygen and nutrients.

This is thought to contribute to low birth weight, which is associated with a heightened risk of illness and death shortly after birth, as well as cognitive and mental-health challenges later in life.

Heat stress may also spike the body's levels of cortisol beyond what they should be in a healthy pregnancy, studies in lab animals suggest .

This may expose developing fetuses to more cortisol than usual, affecting some aspects of development and functions of the placenta.