Each summer, we hear about the deadly and very real danger of extreme heat. But perhaps we should be paying more attention to the impacts of wintertime cold.
Researchers have discovered that over the last 25 years, 65% of all temperature-related deaths were due to cold, while the remaining 35% were heat-related. Overall, in that period, some 69,256 US deaths had extreme temperature exposure recorded as an underlying or contributing cause, according to a new study.
The findings are published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
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“Our findings show that both heat and cold exposure continue to claim thousands of lives every year in the United States, deaths that are largely preventable,” senior author Shady Abohashem, of Mass General Brigham Heart and Vascular Institute, said in a statement.
