New framework launched to track heat health risks for mothers and children

The World Health Organization (WHO), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) launched on 21 October 2026 the first-ever set of priority indicators to help countries track the health impacts of extreme heat on pregnant women, newborns and children, according to a press release by WHO. The framework aims to strengthen preparedness, improve monitoring and accelerate response. These actions will help protect populations most vulnerable to climate-related health risks. The initiative responds to intensifying extreme heat around the world. It sets a shared basis for countries to identify risks and act.

Studies continue to provide evidence that exposure to extreme heat can harm health from pregnancy to childhood. The exposure leads to a 26% increase in the odds of preterm birth. Babies under one year of age experienced 389% more heatwave days in 2024 compared with the 1986 to 2005 baseline period. Globally, an estimated 1.5 billion children are exposed to heatwaves that are becoming more frequent, longer or more severe. The evidence underlines why dedicated indicators are needed.

The new report recommends that countries monitor preterm births, stillbirths, low birthweight, pregnancy hypertension, child deaths and health-facility visits during extreme heat. Monitoring school attendance can also help reveal how heat is disrupting children’s lives. Routine health data and heat-exposure data such as air temperature can help identify possible heat-related signals. These signals can assist countries in detecting unusual changes during periods of extreme heat. Authorities can then conduct further investigation and act accordingly.

“As our world continues to heat up, it creates new risks for health, and older people, pregnant women, newborns and children are among those least able to escape them,” said Bruce Gordon, Director a.i. of WHO’s Department of Environment, Climate Change, One Health and Migration.

He added that health systems need data to recognize this reality and take action. Dr Pascale Allotey, Director of WHO’s Department of Sexual, Reproductive, Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health and Ageing, noted that heat is already affecting the most vulnerable populations. “But what health systems do not count, they cannot respond to,” she said. Tracking outcomes alongside heat exposure can help countries identify impacts and protect women and children.

The information can help health authorities prepare facilities for increased demand and strengthen warnings to pregnant women and families. It can also identify communities at greatest risk and improve heat-health planning. WHO is calling on countries to strengthen their ability to monitor and respond to the health impacts of extreme heat. The organization urges all countries to develop and implement heat-health action plans that are context-specific. Such plans should integrate the needs of vulnerable populations, strengthen early warning systems and trigger timely action.