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Climate change isn’t just about melting ice caps anymore. It’s now affecting how our youngest kids learn and grow, and the findings are pretty scary.
A new study published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry shows something we’ve never seen before. When little children are exposed to really hot temperatures, they struggle to hit basic learning milestones. We’re talking about simple things like recognizing letters and counting numbers.
Researchers from New York University looked at almost 20,000 children between ages three and four. These kids lived in six different countries: Gambia, Georgia, Madagascar, Malawi, Palestine, and Sierra Leone. The results were clear and worrying.
Children who experienced average maximum temperatures above 86°F were 5 to 6.7 percent less likely to meet basic developmental goals. That’s compared to kids living in areas with temperatures below 78.8°F. The difference might sound small, but it’s huge when you’re talking about a child’s developing brain.
“While heat exposure has been linked to negative physical and mental health outcomes across the life course, this study provides a new insight that excessive heat negatively impacts young children’s development across diverse countries,” says Jorge Cuartas, the lead researcher and assistant professor at NYU Steinhardt.
Here’s what makes this even more troubling. The children who suffered most were from poor families. Kids without access to clean water at home also struggled more. The same pattern showed up in crowded city areas. So basically, heat is making inequality worse by hitting vulnerable families the hardest.
Why are young children so affected by heat? Their little bodies can’t handle high temperatures the way adults can. They heat up faster and can’t cool down efficiently through sweating. When it gets too hot, kids have trouble sleeping. They can’t focus properly. Learning new skills becomes much harder during these crucial early years.
The research team used something called the Early Childhood Development Index to measure progress. This tracks four main areas: reading and number skills, physical growth, social and emotional development, and how children approach learning. By matching this data with temperature records and information about each family’s living situation, scientists could see exactly how heat was holding kids back.
The timing of this research matters a lot. With 2024 marking the hottest year ever recorded, we’re seeing what rising global temperatures really mean for everyday life. And it turns out one of the biggest victims is childhood development.
“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,” Cuartas explains.
What happens in those first few years sets the course for everything that follows. If heat is disrupting how toddlers and preschoolers develop basic skills, we’re looking at long-term consequences that will follow them through school and into adulthood.
The researchers are now calling for more studies to figure out exactly how heat messes with development. They also want to identify what might protect some children or make others more vulnerable. Understanding these details will help communities create real solutions like cooling centers, better housing, and emergency plans that put young families first.
The message is urgent and clear. We need to act now to protect our children from a warming planet.
