UNICEF: How to Keep Kids Safe and Healthy During Heat Waves
Beat the heat: a primer for parents on how to protect kids as heat waves and periods of extreme heat happen more often because of climate change. Learn what heat waves are, why extreme heat is dangerous for children and how parents can help kids stay safe, cool, hydrated and healthy during hot weather.
Heat wave safety for kids: quick tips and highlights
Heat waves can be especially dangerous for children because their bodies heat up faster than adults’ bodies, and they may not recognize when they are thirsty, overheated or dehydrated.
During an extreme heat wave, parents and caregivers can help keep kids safe by keeping them cool, offering water often, limiting outdoor activity during the hottest parts of the day and watching for signs of heat stress.
To help protect children during heat waves:
- keep children in cool, shaded or well-ventilated spaces
- offer water often, even before children say they are thirsty
- limit outdoor play during midday and afternoon heat
- use shade, hats and lightweight clothing to help reduce sun exposure
- watch for symptoms like thirst, sweating, headache, dizziness, unusual tiredness or odd behavior
- seek medical care if symptoms are severe
Watch this short video for more tips on how to protect kids during a heat wave:
What is a heat wave?
A heat wave is a period of unusually hot weather, when temperatures reach somewhere in the top 10 percent of local 15-day average temperatures for three or more straight days.
Why are heat waves dangerous for children?
Children are uniquely vulnerable when exposed to heat waves. They take longer to acclimate to higher temperatures; their bodies are slower to produce more sweat as needed to cool down. Their core temperatures rise higher and faster than adults, so the adults may be slow to realize what's happening.
Young children are also more susceptible to becoming dehydrated because more of their body weight is water.
What are the effects of heat waves for kids?
Exposure to extreme heat raises a child's risks of developing asthma, allergies, cardiovascular illness and respiratory problems later. Heat waves can limit access to safe water, and affect a child's ability to concentrate and learn, undermining their progress at school.
Pregnant women risk experiencing labor complications during heat waves and delivering low birthweight babies.
How does heat-related illness happen?
Exposure to high temperatures and humidity combined with physical exertion or dehydration can overwhelm the body’s ability to cool itself.
Mild cases of heat-related illness include an infant's heat rash.
A more serious — in some cases life-threatening — form of heat-related illness is heatstroke: when a person's body temperature surges above 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius). With heatstroke, there is a risk of organ failure.
How can parents keep young children safe and healthy during a heat wave?
To beat the heat, UNICEF advises parents to:
- be aware when hot weather is coming — check the forecast and adapt plans accordingly
- make sure kids drink plenty of water — doctors advise caregivers to closely monitor water consumption and to encourage children to drink before they ask for it, because if they are asking for water, they are likely already dehydrated
- create cooler places for infants and children to play, and avoid the outdoors during the hottest part of the day (midday/afternoon hours)
- find ways to limit physical activity or over-exertion — maybe skip the playground!
How to keep babies and toddlers safe during heat waves?
Babies and toddlers are the most vulnerable group during heat waves. Their bodies heat up faster than older children and adults, their sweat glands are not fully developed and they cannot tell you when they are too hot. That combination makes it easy for a baby to overheat before a caregiver realizes something is wrong.
Safety tips for babies 0-12 months:
- Breastfeed more often – breast milk adjusts to provide extra hydration in heat; if formula-fed, offer frequent small bottles.
- Do not give water to babies under six months.
- Dress in a single layer of loose, lightweight cotton or muslin – a onesie or just a diaper may be enough.
- Check skin regularly: if it feels hot or looks flushed, move the baby to a cooler space immediately.
- Never use a fan that blows directly on an infant.
- Keep the room temperature below 77°F (25°C) if possible.
- Do not drape a blanket over a stroller, as that traps heat dangerously fast; use a clip-on parasol instead.
Safety tips for toddlers 1-3 years:
- Offer water or diluted fruit juice frequently – do not wait for them to ask, as toddlers often do not recognize thirst.
- Use light cotton clothing and a wide-brimmed hat outdoors.
- Avoid the playground between 11am and 3pm when surfaces (slides, climbing frames) can burn.
- Cool them down with a lukewarm (not cold) sponge bath or paddling pool in the shade.
- Watch for signs of overheating: unusual fussiness, red or hot skin, fewer wet nappies/diapers than normal, or crying without tears.
How can I tell that my child is suffering from heat stress?
Symptoms of heat stress include feeling thirsty, sweating, headaches and dizziness. Odd behavior can also be a sign.
If symptoms are detected, immediately move the child to a shaded and ventilated area to rest and rehydrate. If symptoms are severe, a child may need attention and care from a medical professional.
Why are we hearing so much more about heat waves these days?
Heat waves have grown more intense and more frequent because of climate change, according to scientists.
On average, one-third of the world's children experience four to five heat waves per year. This means exposure to one or more of the following conditions:
- temperatures above 95°F (35°C) for 84 or more days a year
- a heat wave lasting at least 4.7 days
- temperatures that are at least 3.6°F (95°C) above the local 15-day average
As heat waves happen more and more, children's levels of exposure — and the health and safety risks involved — are only expected to increase.
Related: Understanding Children's Climate Risks
What can governments do to reduce risks from heat waves?
UNICEF argues that policy responses and financing for solutions to heat waves remain inadequate and is urging action by governments and others to minimize, manage and build resilience to chronic heat exposure — keeping the needs and rights of children at the heart of all adaptation and mitigation efforts.
UNICEF's recommendations include:
- investing in early warning systems
- reforming building standards
- adapting water, sanitation and hygiene, health, education, nutrition, and other critical systems, services and infrastructure to better cope with the impacts
- training health workers and teachers to strengthen prevention, early action, diagnosis, and treatment of heat-related illness in children
- ensuring adequate financing for necessary interventions
- support climate education and training, including green skilling
What is UNICEF doing to mitigate the harmful effects of heat waves?
UNICEF works with governments and partners worldwide to develop and implement climate action plans — like establishing better heat alert systems. UNICEF also supports a range of efforts to adapt and/or mitigate climate impacts like heat waves on education, health and other critical systems that children rely on to survive and thrive.
UNICEF also advocates for accelerated action by governments to reduce carbon dioxide emissions to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, while also increasing funding for climate change adaptation measures.
Learn more: Visit UNICEF USA's Resource Hub for Parents and Caregivers
