Extreme heat is putting pregnant women and their babies at risk
We must act now
Extreme heat is now one of the most immediate and visible health impacts of climate change. Yet the risks it poses to pregnant women and newborns remain largely absent from climate adaptation, health policy and emergency planning.
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Extreme heat is linked to premature birth, low birth weight, stillbirth and maternal complications.
Those least able to avoid exposure or adapt their homes and working conditions face the greatest risks.
Pregnant women and babies remain overlooked in many heat-health responses.
Governments, international organisations and health systems must act now to protect them and build healthier, more resilient communities in a warming world.
Extreme heat is happening right now. It is not a future risk
Record temperatures
Extreme heat is now one of the most immediate and visible health impacts of climate change. July and August 2026 saw record land and sea surface temperatures that led to heat, drought, fire and floods globally.
We all felt the effects of these high temperatures through sleepless nights, disrupted routines and concerns for our health and the people we care about.
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Warming world
With a major El Niño expected to increase the risk of more frequent, intense and prolonged heatwaves, counties have to prepare. If they don’t, preventable harm to mothers and babies will increase without faster adaptation.
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Now is the time to act
Every year of delay leaves more women and babies exposed to avoidable harm.
Health systems and governments must prepare now, rather than waiting for extreme heat to become an even greater public health emergency.
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ONE HOT DAY produced by Julie Winokur & Ed Kashi / Talking Eyes Media. This story was supported by the Pulitzer Center.
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5%
increase in premature birth
7%
increase in gestational diabetes
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5%
increase in obstetric complications
This is an issue of equity. The greatest harms of extreme heat are often felt by women with the fewest resources - climate change is a risk multiplier and is widening existing health inequalities.
The impacts are unequal. Extreme heat is deepening inequality
The impacts are unequal. Extreme heat is deepening inequality
This is an issue of equity. The greatest impacts are often felt by women with the fewest resources - climate change is a risk multiplier and is widening existing health inequalities.
Where women live
In hotter regions and densely populated cities, where the urban heat-island effect and poorly designed houses can intensify temperatures, millions of pregnant women have little opportunity to escape dangerous heat exposure.
In Tamil Nadu, India, one study found that the risk of miscarriage rose from 2% among women working in cooler conditions to 5% among those working in extreme heat.
How women work
Outdoor workers and those in manual or informal employment may be unable to reduce their exposure during pregnancy. In Tamil Nadu, India, one study found that the risk of miscarriage more than doubled among women working in cooler conditions than those working in extreme heat.
The resources available to them
Women in low-resource settings may lack access to cooling, clean water and reliable heat-health information. Work, childcare and responsibilities, such as collecting water can also prevent them from resting during the hottest periods of the day.
As temperatures continue to rise, hundreds of millions of pregnant women are becoming more exposed - and the burden falls hardest on those with the fewest resources to adapt.
Stories from women and mothers around the world
Director of Climate, Environment and Health, CeSHHAR
Zimbabwe
"The challenge is still just basic understanding of the impacts of heat on pregnancy. We see lower birth weight, we see prolonged labour in the antepartum phase, but we also see preterm birth – children coming much earlier than their time. And it’s because of this labour in the heat."
HAPI heat champion
Zimbabwe
"Heat affects the health of pregnant women. They may deliver a stillbirth or a lightweight baby – some of the things that I have heard happened to pregnant women because of heat. They swell, the legs swell, they get dizzy and they also give birth to preterm babies, and babies that are not very healthy."
Teacher
London
"We are starting to get a lot of heatwaves and the country is not ready for that. During the summer heatwaves I was between 12-17 weeks pregnant, it’s quite tough for a pregnant teacher anyway let alone during the heatwave."
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Malaysia
"Across our planet, rising temperature caused by climate change stand to increase the risk of congenital anomalies and lower birth weights with the odds of preterm and stillbirths rising roughly 5% for each additional degree Celsius."
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Midwife and global health practitioner
Pakistan
"The midwifery model of care is one of the most climate-conscious, cost-effective solutions available. Yet it is absent from most climate funding frameworks. Investing here is not only an equity issue but also an economic imperative."
The results from
our survey
Our survey: midwives warn extreme heat is outpacing maternal care
No pregnancy is complete without midwives and health professionals and yet their voices are often missing from the conversation on extreme heat and its impact on pregnancy.
To address this, in September 2026, Censuswide conducted a survey of 1,000 currently practicing healthcare professionals - including 250 midwives - across the UK, India, Australia, Brazil and Zimbabwe, involved in pregnancy, childbirth, postnatal or newborn care to understand their perceptions of how extreme heat impacts pregnant women and their babies.
Their message is clear: health concerns linked to extreme heat are rising, but the guidance, training and facilities needed to protect pregnant women and babies have not kept pace.
Health professionals
are already seeing
the impact
Solutions exist
Communities that have long lived with extreme heat are already developing and testing practical ways to protect pregnant women and babies. These include heat alerts, health-worker training, income protection, cooling measures and adaptations to health facilities.
Organisations like Wellcome are helping to build the evidence base and solutions are already being piloted, from the UK to India to Zimbabwe.
UK
MAGENTA is a research project which aims to advance understanding of how exposure to elevated or prolonged heat during pregnancy impacts pregnancy outcomes in Wales and London.
Zimbabwe
Temperatures in Southern Africa are rising at twice the global rate, with major health implications for maternal and newborn health.
India
In India, the combination of extreme heat plus a large outdoor and informal workforce puts the health of many pregnant women at risk as temperatures rise.
Australia
Australia has a diverse climate and population which provides a unique opportunity to understand the impact of extreme heat exposure during pregnancy.
Brazil
In Brazil, Wellcome is funding the Center for Data Integration and Knowledge in Health (CIDACS) - Clima Climate and Health Data study to conduct research on heat and pregnancy.
Three actions we are calling for
Every year of delay leaves more women and babies exposed to avoidable harm.
We are calling for:
1. We are calling for greater protection for pregnant and postpartum women and newborns in national plans.
Governments should include specific, funded and accountable measures in their National Adaptation Plans, and current health systems, with a focus on reducing inequalities for the most marginalised women.
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2. We are calling for the creation of the first dedicated WHO clinical guideline on heat, pregnancy, and the postpartum period.
Since launching our campaign, the WHO has released its global framework to track the health risks around this issue. Building on this, clinical guidance should cover training for midwives and obstetricians, use of heat-index data in maternity care, how maternity services adapt, and evidence-based exposure limits for pregnant workers, including those in informal and precarious jobs.
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3. We are calling for the building of data systems that make accountability possible.
Governments should integrate heat-exposure data into existing systems such as Maternal Death Surveillance and Response, linked to meteorological data and early-warning networks.
Pregnant women can no longer remain invisible in the response to extreme heat. At COP31 and beyond, leaders must recognise the risks, invest in proven and emerging solutions, and embed maternal and newborn health within climate action.
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