In June 2025, the study, Extreme Heat and Pediatric Health in a Warming World: A Space-Time Stratified Case-Crossover Investigation in Ontario, Canada, was published to better understand the specific impacts of extreme heat events (EHEs) on child health. Analyzing emergency healthcare data from 2005 to 2015, researchers found that EHEs led to substantial increases in pediatric hospital admissions and emergency visits for respiratory illnesses, asthma, infectious and parasitic diseases, lower respiratory infections, enteritis, and heat-related illnesses such as heatstroke and dehydration. Interestingly, EHEs were linked to a decrease in injury and transportation related visits. These findings underscore the unique vulnerability of children to extreme heat and the urgent need for targeted public health strategies as climate change intensifies.
Read the full study here.