To stay mentally clear and healthy, you need to sleep soundly. And to have a sound sleep, you need to sleep in a dark and well-ventilated room. In 2023, scientists found that for a comfortable sleep, the air temperature in the room should be between 20-25 degrees Celsius. Otherwise, a person may experience insomnia and related problems. Recently, researchers conducted another study and found that sleeping in a hot room can lead to stroke. This is the name of an acute cerebrovascular accident, after which a person may remain paralyzed or even die. So how does high air temperature affect human health so much? Scientists have an explanation for this.
Scientists have found that sleeping in hot weather increases the likelihood of a stroke. Image source: aif.ru
The dangers of sleeping in hot weather
The authors of the scientific edition of Science Alert said that at high night temperatures people have an increased risk of stroke. According to them, German scientists recently studied data on stroke cases among residents of the city of Augsburg over the past 15 years. It turned out that on nights with high temperatures, people were more likely to end up in the hospital due to a stroke. According to statistics, women and older people are especially vulnerable to heat.
According to statistics, women and older people suffer the most from high temperatures at night. Image source: health.com
According to the European Heart Journal, the researchers looked at 11,037 stroke cases between 2006 and 2020. As it turned out, the risk of stroke increased significantly if the nighttime air temperature became “tropical”. In the study, a temperature above +14.6 degrees Celsius was considered this. It is worth noting that scientists had in mind the weather outside the window, and inside houses people slept at even higher temperatures.
If it’s above +14 degrees Celsius outside at night, you need to seriously think about cooling your apartment. Image source: businessinsider.com
Research has shown that the number of strokes on hot nights is increasing every year. For example, between 2006 and 2012, hot nights were associated with two additional strokes per year. And from 2013 to 2020, hot nights were associated with 33 additional cases per year. Scientists believe that this is evidence of a gradual increase in air temperature.
Read also:What should be the ideal temperature on Earth for everyone to feel good
Unexpected cause of stroke
Most likely, high air temperature causes a stroke for a variety of reasons. For example, cerebrovascular accidents are highly likely to be associated with dehydration. In 2016, scientists did find a clear link between water shortages and the risk of ischemic stroke. Also, strokes may be associated with the fact that some people cannot afford to buy an air conditioner – this is already a socio-economic factor.
There may be other factors that increase the risk of stroke on hot nights. But to identify them, scientists need to conduct additional research. According to the study's authors, even the current results may encourage someone to take preventive measures and save their life. Ordinary people may seriously think about purchasing an air conditioner to cool the air. And city authorities can think about how to save residents from high temperatures. In addition, hospitals could monitor the weather and keep more staff on duty during hot nights. After all, statistics show that in times like these, many people especially need help.
During the summer, the number of stroke cases may increase. Image source: kp.ru
It is necessary to take measures to save people from high temperatures, because the situation will worsen every year. There is no doubt that the Earth is getting hotter – this can be seen even by the fact that every summer the weather breaks temperature records.
Even if a person is not at risk, it is better to cool the room before going to bed. For example, you can open the window an hour before going to bed and ventilate the room – in the evening it is colder outside, and you will definitely sleep more comfortably. You can also sleep with the window completely open, the main thing is to avoid a draft.
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If you are interested, there are articles on our website about how to cope with the summer heat. For example, be sure to read the material by my colleague Andrey Zhukov “What alternatives do air conditioners have to survive in the heat?” He also has an article about what foods you should eat in the summer to better cope with the heat.