How does heat affect human behavior?

The human body is not adapted to heat. In case of heatstroke, disability or even death may occur as a result of polyorgan failure (kidneys, heart, and brain).

35 degrees Celsius with 100 percent air humidity can be fatal, TASS reports. In these conditions, sweat is not produced, and the body freezes, as a result of which even the most prepared person will die in a few hours.

But physical health problems are not the only danger associated with high temperatures. According to a study, the heat contributes to the deterioration of the state of mental health. Extremely high temperatures are associated with increased agitation and depression. Heatstroke also poses a serious threat to the brain, and 10 to 28 percent of people face long-term cognitive or neurological problems. They, in turn, can cause various mental disorders—for example, depression.

Heat is dangerous also for patients with mental problems. A large international study has shown that elevated temperatures can trigger relapses in people who suffer from bipolar disorder. High temperatures aggravate also the symptoms of schizophrenia, various mood disorders, and anxiety.

A US study has shown that heat increases the number of people who seek emergency care due to worsening mental health. One of the sad consequences of the heat is the increase in the number of suicides; from 1979 to 2016, their number increased in 60 countries.

Medicines are also a disturbing phenomenon in hot conditions; people take them to alleviate mental disorders. Many drugs negatively affect the body's ability to cope with heat. The result is an increased risk of organ failure and even death.

People's efficiency and cognitive abilities decrease during the hot summer months. Researchers have found that people solve problems worse when it's hot. A good example is the test results of American schoolchildren. The researchers studied the scores of about one million students, from 1999 to 2011. It was found that if the temperature in the classroom during an exam is 32 degrees Celsius, the chances of schoolchildren passing the exam are reduced by 10 percent. Another American study showed that university students who were in classrooms with a temperature of 26.3 to 30 degrees Celsius remembered information worse than those who studied in classrooms with a temperature of 21.4 to 25 degrees Celsius.

Heat affects productivity also. It was found that the productivity begins to fall gradually when it is 23 to 24 degrees Celsius, and the decline is 8.9 percent at 30 degrees Celsius.

These statistics are related to the fact that in the case of heat, the body's resources are distributed differently, and the energy is allocated to cooling the body. As a result, indicators of intellectual activity deteriorate.

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