Health Risks and Impacts

Nature cools ❄️. Concrete and tarmac burn 🔥. This is what that looks like. This infrared footage captures the Urban Heat Island Effect in action: Tarmac, concrete and rooftops radiating intense heat. Green spaces staying dramatically cooler, even under the same sun. The difference can be as much as 12°C. And it matters more than most people realise. ⤷ Hotter cities mean higher risks: more heat-related illness, pressure on healthcare, and even avoidable deaths ⤷ Energy demand surges as air conditioning ramps up, adding to emissions ⤷ And those worst affected are often communities with the least access to nature and the fewest resources to adapt But the good news is: nature works. ⤷ A 10% increase in tree cover can lower local temperatures by up to 2°C ⤷ Green roofs can cool buildings by up to 5°C, reducing the need for artificial cooling ⤷ And greener cities support better mental and physical health, reducing stress, improving air quality, and creating spaces to connect, move and breathe This is more than a design challenge. It’s an opportunity to rethink urban resilience. By 2050, 68% of the world’s population will live in urban areas. Cities don’t have to fight against nature. They can thrive with it. 🎥 Sky News

The negative impacts of summer heat waves are particularly felt in underrepresented communities that lack access to opportunities. Temperatures can soar up to eight degrees higher in these areas compared to wealthier, predominantly white neighborhoods. This stark difference is not a coincidence. It is a direct result of historical redlining practices and the urban heat island effect. Unfortunately, these influences continue to shape communities today. The legacy of discriminatory practices has led to neighborhoods that have fewer opportunities, and these neighborhoods bear the brunt of extreme weather. They often don’t have adequate places to cool off, including #greenspaces like public parks or community centers. As a result, these communities sustain higher rates of heat-related illnesses and fatalities. According to the City of New York, Black New Yorkers die from heat stress at double the rate of white residents. This pressing issue demands our attention and action, however, initiatives to mitigate these impacts face significant challenges. Addressing the limited resources and higher safety concerns within affected neighborhoods should be a priority. We must fortify these communities with the infrastructure needed to endure excessive temperatures. Increasing green spaces and establishing more cooling centers will be a good start. We can help create a future where every community, regardless of its past, has the opportunity to thrive in a safe and healthy environment. It will take working together and investing in equitable solutions. https://nbcnews.to/4cCyhOc

Around 2 to 3 a.m., the human body hits its lowest point of the entire 24-hour cycle. In hospitals, that is also the hour the most emergencies tend to cluster.   This is not a wellness problem. It is a workforce-design problem hiding inside human physiology, and most organizations that run 24-hour operations have never actually accounted for it.   Chinyelu Oraedu, M.D., an academic hospitalist, has worked nights for 17 years. What she has learned should change how leaders think about every overnight shift they staff.   The science is not soft. Melatonin peaks, core temperature bottoms out, and alertness drops to its lowest point precisely when the deepest demands can arrive. The people who absorb that mismatch are not just doctors. They are nurses, techs, EMTs, and every worker keeping a 24-hour system running while the rest of us sleep. We treat them as invisible infrastructure and rarely build the environment that their biology actually requires.   For any leader responsible for round-the-clock teams, three things are worth sitting with.   First, night work is a physiological load, not a scheduling preference. The cost is biological and it accrues whether or not anyone names it.   Second, the systems that perform best treat sleep as part of the job, not something workers solve alone after they clock out. Protected recovery is an operational variable, not a personal virtue.   Third, alignment matters more than effort. A subset of people genuinely function better at night, and matching schedules to that reality outperforms asking everyone to grind against their own clock.   Her framing is the one I keep returning to: night shift is a biological stress test no one talks about.   Search "The Podcast by KevinMD" wherever you listen to podcasts   What is one change to how your organization staffs or supports overnight teams that you could realistically make this quarter?   #HealthcareLeadership #Workforce #NightShift #CircadianRhythm #ThePodcastbyKevinMD

Dear Business Leaders, The recent tragic death of a 26-year-old employee in Pune highlights a systemic issue that demands our attention. It compels us to consider our role as leaders in preventing such avoidable outcomes. We must urgently address two critical issues: 1. Exploitation of Young Employees - Across industries, young employees are overworked under the guise of "training" or "preparation for the real world." Although hard work is essential, extreme hours should not become standard. The World Health Organization links long working hours to a 35% increased risk of stroke and a 17% higher risk of heart disease. This prevalent pattern sees young professionals working tirelessly for weeks or months without a break, fostering a toxic culture where exhaustion is celebrated and well-being is ignored. Immediate action is required. We must audit work environments to identify and rectify these harmful practices. When long hours are necessary, companies must provide support such as rest areas, meals, mental health resources, and mandatory time off. A 2019 Gallup study shows that burnout not only diminishes employee well-being but also reduces productivity by 63%. We must prioritize long-term sustainability over short-term gains. 2. The Role of HR in Employee Well-Being - HR is pivotal to an organization’s culture. Yet often, HR departments are either unaware or unresponsive to burnout signs. A study by the American Psychological Association indicates that 75% of employees experience significant workplace stress, with nearly half requiring help managing it. HR must be empowered to intervene early when employee well-being is at risk. Why This Matters for Business Leaders? Gallup reports that 85% of employees globally are disengaged at work. These figures reflect a deep-seated issue in organizational treatment of personnel. If we fail to address these issues, we contribute to declining performance and perpetuate a harmful system. The future of any successful company hinges on its treatment of people. We need to start asking ourselves: Are we willing to measure success not just by financial performance but by the health and happiness of the employees driving that performance? The data is clear: when employee well-being improves, so does organizational success. If we don’t act now, when will we? Sad yet hopeful, Vineet

🌡️ A new study finds that in 854 European cities, heat-related deaths this summer more than tripled due to #climatechange. 🔎24,000 excess deaths across the cities studied. Nearly 70% of these fatalities (16,500 deaths) were directly attributable to human-induced climate change. Older people were hit hardest: more than 80% of victims were over 65. Rome, Athens, and Bucharest recorded the highest excess mortality, while Stockholm, Madrid, and Bratislava saw the largest shares of deaths attributable to climate change. And it will get worse unless we act. At the World Meteorological Organization, we are working with countries to turn climate science into lifesaving action: ✅ Strengthening heat-health early warning systems. ✅ Delivering impact-based forecasts to help hospitals, schools, and cities prepare. ✅ Building resilience in urban environments, where the risks are greatest. ✅ Supporting governments to integrate climate & health services into their adaptation plans. 🚨 The message from science is clear: heat is the deadliest climate hazard in Europe today. The solutions exist — but they must be scaled up urgently. Let’s not wait until the next heatwave to realise what is at stake. 📖 Read the full report here from Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change & the Environment : https://lnkd.in/eSmbxE96

The connection between climate change, increasing #heat and their impact on people's health is a topic that unfortunately receives much less public attention than other climate-related issues such as droughts, floods or decarbonization. I consider this to be a major oversight and would therefore like to use the current heat wave in Europe as an opportunity to share a few thoughts. First of all, we need to be aware of the far-reaching and sometimes very different effects that extreme (and prolonged) heat can have on people. Amongst others, excessive heat leads to mental illness, suicides, and aggression. But the effects of heat go far beyond that. To put it bluntly, heat kills. Heat can kill by causing malnutrition (due to reduced crop yields), or directly through heatstroke (a lethal combination of dehydration, organ failure and heart attack), by exacerbating underlying health conditions (cardiovascular diseases, for instance), or causing chronic illnesses (for example, triggering kidney disease through prolonged and repeated dehydration). The extent of the danger became more than clear in the summer of 2022, particularly in the EU, where excess deaths spiked visibly during the brutal heatwaves of July 2022. Estimates suggest that heat may have caused 20,000 excess deaths across Western Europe: health authorities in Germany and Spain each attributed more than 4,500 deaths during this period to the heat. The true figures may be even higher; since heat often kills indirectly by exacerbating underlying health conditions, it is not always possible to identify heat as a factor in a particular death. And they are set to rise over the coming years. The IPCC Climate Report shows that by 2050, about half of the European population may be exposed to high or very high risk of heat stress during summer (please also see graphic below): https://lnkd.in/e3z7hSm8 Beyond the obvious measures to combat climate change (decarbonization, restoration of natural habitats etc.), there are two big steps we need to take: making health systems and providers heat-ready, across all segments of society; and making our lived environment heat-resilient. This means heat resilience must be integrated more strongly into existing climate change mitigation strategies. Heat resilience has to be an integral part of adaptation policy, just like measures to counter pollution, flooding and drought.

I used to work 48-hour shifts as a doctor and think it was normal. I'd survive on canteen snacks and say 'sleep is for the weak'. Back then, I didn't know this lifestyle was killing me - and millions of others. According to the WHO, working 55+ hours weekly killed 745,000 people from stroke and heart disease alone in just one year. This number is from 2016, so you can imagine how much it would be now. And yet, we celebrate this slow suicide with terms like "hustle culture" and "grinding." The hard truth? Your overworked body is a ticking time bomb: ▶ Just 55+ hours of work weekly raises stroke risk by 35% ▶ Working nights disrupts over 500 genes in your body ▶ A 3-month period of burnout can age your brain by 3 YEARS ▶ Chronic overwork increases heart disease by 17% ▶ Sleep deprivation from work causes the same impairment as being drunk I see the consequences in hospitals all too often: 32-year-old tech executives rushed to emergency rooms. 29-year-olds with chest pain and irregular heartbeats. Successful professionals facing burnout-induced breakdowns. Your body is desperately trying to warn you before it's too late: - You need caffeine just to function through basic tasks - You've stopped feeling emotions - good or bad - Simple decisions feel overwhelming and exhausting - Your heart races randomly throughout the day - You can't remember the last time you truly rested We've normalised working ourselves to death in India, treating exhaustion as a status symbol. But here's what they don't tell you in business school: Dead people don't get promotions. No job is worth sacrificing your one and only life for. What warning sign from your body have you been ignoring? P.S - If this post helped you check in with yourself, your connections would appreciate it too. Repost 🔁 to share the message. #healthandwellness #stress #mentalhealth

𝗢𝗯𝗲𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗱𝗼 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗱𝘆 𝘄𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁. Our review is now published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology.   Emerging evidence suggests benefits in alcohol use disorder, smoking cessation, asthma, psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease, depression, food cravings, binge-eating behaviour, and potentially even neurodegenerative disease.   This broader perspective is important because obesity is not just about body weight. It is a complex chronic disease that contributes to more than 200 associated diseases and health conditions.   In our review, we summarize evidence from randomized clinical trials and meta-analyses showing that ten approved and emerging obesity medications can improve a remarkably broad range of obesity-related conditions, including: • Liver disease (MASLD and MASH) • Chronic kidney disease • PCOS (now increasingly referred to as PMOS, polyendocrine metabolic-ovarian syndrome) • Obstructive sleep apnoea • Osteoarthritis and physical functioning • Cardiovascular disease • Prediabetes and type 2 diabetes   Importantly, many of these benefits are related to weight loss itself. However, accumulating evidence suggests that some effects, particularly with GLP-1 receptor agonist-based therapies, may also occur through weight loss-independent mechanisms.   The era of viewing obesity medications as “weight-loss drugs” alone is rapidly coming to an end. They are increasingly becoming disease-modifying therapies with effects across multiple organ systems.   At the same time, obesity medications are not a substitute for a healthy lifestyle. The foundation of obesity treatment remains a healthy lifestyle intervention, including attention to nutrition, physical activity, sleep, stress management and mental wellbeing.   These medications can also cause adverse effects, most commonly gastrointestinal side effects, and should therefore be prescribed and monitored by appropriately trained healthcare professionals.   A special thank you to my outstanding co-authors Mesut Savas, Susanne Kuckuck and Mariëtte Boon. Their expertise, dedication and critical thinking were invaluable in bringing together the evidence across so many different disease domains. It was a privilege to work with such a talented team.   See link to this scientific article in first comment

"Work hard, play hard." 𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀? Many employees would prefer to work fewer hours than they currently do. This is what we call 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 - 𝗮 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀. 𝗔 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗿. In a 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆 with Tim Kremser and George Melios, we put that to the test, tracing employees' wellbeing and mental health across 35 years of panel data. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗼 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗽𝘁. 𝗜𝗳 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗶𝘁 𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲. Mental health drops when overemployment begins, then keeps dropping, roughly doubling by the second year with no sign of recovery. The same pattern runs through satisfaction with work, leisure, health, and life overall. Physical health, on the contrary, seems less affected. 𝗧𝘄𝗼 𝗽𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗵𝗮𝘀𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴:  • 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝘀 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗵 - 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗮𝗽. Someone working 35 hours who wants 25 is overemployed, there is a preference-mismatch; someone happily working 50 is not.  • 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲, 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗵𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘂𝗻𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆: 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗲𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝘁𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲. Working-time policy needs to attend not just to how many hours people work, but to whether those hours match what people actually want. I am posting the link to the study in the first comment below. Centre for Economic Performance, LSE Department of Psychological and Behavioural Science #Wellbeing #MentalHealth #WorkingHours #FutureOfWork

Overwork kills. Across the world, 745,000 people died from working long hours in one year. It's a staggering number, and yet, as we discussed on a recent episode of The Accounting Podcast, nobody seems to be treating this like the urgent public health crisis it is. According to a report by the World Health Organization, working 55 or more hours per week is associated with a 35% higher risk of stroke and a 17% higher risk of dying from heart disease compared to working 35-40 hours. The stress hormones produced by chronic overwork are literally damaging our cardiovascular systems. The accounting profession has normalized these dangerously long hours, particularly during busy seasons. But as I've experienced, even a week of working those crazy hours takes a noticeable toll on your health and well-being. We're losing talented professionals to burnout and stress-related health problems, and it's time for a change. The WHO recommends working no more than 54 hours per week, with 35-40 hours being the ideal range for optimal health. It's time for our profession to take this seriously and prioritize the well-being of our people. No job is worth sacrificing your health for. If you're an accountant struggling with excessive work hours, know that you're not alone and that it's not sustainable. Let's start a conversation about changing this toxic culture and creating healthier, more balanced work environments. What can we do? I want to hear your thoughts. Let me know in the comments below. 👇