Climate change could pose a threat to children's intellectual development, a new study says.
Kids growing up under higher-than-usual temperatures -- average temps above 86 degrees Fahrenheit -- are less likely to meet developmental milestones for literacy and mathematics, researchers reported Monday in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.
"Because early development lays the foundation for lifelong learning, physical and mental health, and overall well-being, these findings should alert researchers, policymakers and practitioners to the urgent need to protect children's development in a warming world," lead researcher Jorge Cuartas, an assistant professor of applied psychology at New York University, said in a news release.
For the study, researchers analyzed data for more than 19,600 3- and 4-year-olds in the African nations of Gambia, Madagascar, Malawi and Sierra Leone; in Georgia, a nation on the Black Sea; and in Palestine.
The team compared information on the children's education, health, nutrition and sanitation against data on average monthly temperatures, to assess any potential links between heat exposure and early childhood development.
