Extreme heat does not only make daily life harder. It poses serious threats to human health, livelihoods and the right to life. The climate crisis, driven by the burning of fossil fuels, is raising temperatures worldwide and making extreme weather events more frequent.
Extreme heat is one of the foremost impacts of the climate crisis in deepening existing inequalities, and it is women and girls who feel those impacts most. Levels of heat exposure are shaped not only by gender but also by factors such as age, socio-economic conditions and geographical location.
Extreme temperatures affect women and girls differently from men and boys. This is the result not of biological differences alone, but of the existing social, economic and structural inequalities that work against women and girls. It is therefore critical that policies for adapting to the climate crisis are designed with a gender-responsive approach.
Nilüfer Baş / 2025
How does extreme heat affect women's health?
Certain basic physiological features can make it harder for women to adapt to high temperatures and keep their bodies cool.
Perspiration and heart capacity: Sweating is the body's natural way of cooling itself. Research shows, however, that from adolescence onwards women sweat less than men. Women's hearts, which on average are smaller, may also come under greater strain in conditions of extreme heat.
Hormones: Women's menstrual cycles cause natural fluctuations in body temperature. This can make hot weather feel more physically and mentally draining. For women going through the menopause, hot flushes can become far more uncomfortable when combined with high ambient temperatures.
Age: As we age, the body's capacity to cool itself declines. Research shows that older women sweat about half as much as older men. Many older women may also have difficulty accessing air conditioning or other cooling systems because of limited economic means. Children, too, depend on the support of others to stay cool, drink enough fluids and have the signs of heatstroke recognised.
Pregnancy: During pregnancy the body has to work harder to regulate its temperature, which makes pregnant women more vulnerable to heat-related illness and dehydration. Research shows that exposure to extreme heat is associated with increased risks of pre-term birth, low birth weight, congenital anomalies and stillbirth. Pregnancy-related health risks such as hypertension may also rise with heat.
Chronic health conditions: Extreme heat can aggravate existing health conditions such as diabetes, asthma and cardiovascular disease, and can increase the risk of death. Certain conditions such as dementia and anxiety, or the medicines used to treat them, can also make it harder to recognise the signs of heat-related illness.
Extreme heat also has adverse effects on mental health. High temperatures do not only increase feelings of confusion and fatigue. Many people choose to stay indoors to avoid the heat, which can cut them off from the social interaction and support networks they rely on. Research shows that strong community ties, where people check on and support one another regularly, can help reduce both the physical effects of extreme heat and its negative consequences for mental health.
Worldwide, close to half a million people die each year from heat-related health conditions, with marked increases in these deaths during heatwaves. A significant share of these deaths can be prevented through greater public awareness, early warning systems and effective response.
Nilüfer Baş / 2025
Why does extreme heat deepen gender inequality?
When biological differences combine with gender inequalities, poverty and crisis conditions, the effects of extreme heat are felt more heavily by women and girls.
Who is most affected by extreme heat?
Among those most vulnerable to extreme heat are women and girls living in conflict zones, in disaster-affected areas, in rural communities and in informal settlements.
In these living environments there is often no electricity to run fans, refrigerators or air conditioning, or no financial means to access such services. Inadequate housing and a lack of shaded areas, unhealthy working conditions, limited economic opportunities and insufficient infrastructure further increase the risk of adverse impacts. As a result, access to health services, care networks, green spaces, support mechanisms for those subjected to violence and cooling centres can all be restricted.
Those who carry the heaviest burden of extreme heat and the other impacts of the climate crisis are often the people who have contributed least to greenhouse gas emissions and who have the fewest resources with which to adapt.
Drinking water, safe sanitation and hygiene infrastructure, and heat risk for women and girls
In a world of rising extreme heat, access to safe water is critical for survival. Yet one in four women and girls still lacks access to safe drinking water.
In communities where clean and affordable water sources are inadequate, the responsibility for collecting water falls largely on women and girls. This means travelling long distances to fetch water, journeys that become harder and riskier during periods of extreme heat.
When women and girls do not have safe and easily accessible toilet and sanitation facilities, they may avoid drinking enough water in order to reduce the need to use a toilet. This increases the risk of dehydration and heat-related health problems, particularly during periods of extreme heat.
Inadequate sanitation conditions, especially during menstruation, aggravate the physical and psychological effects of extreme heat. These conditions can make it harder for women and girls to go to work or school, or to take part in other social and economic activities. Today, two in five women worldwide lack access to adequate safe sanitation and hygiene infrastructure services.
Certain basic physiological features can make it harder for women to adapt to high temperatures and keep their bodies cool.
Nilüfer Baş/2023
Extreme heat further increases women's care responsibilities
The majority of those working in jobs that require labour in high temperatures, such as construction and agriculture, are men. This means men face higher rates of heat-related health problems and workplace deaths. Workplace measures such as adequate water breaks, rest periods and protective equipment suited to hot conditions are therefore critical to the health and safety of all workers.
Women, however, continue to shoulder domestic care responsibilities alongside their paid work. These responsibilities cover the care of children, older people, neighbours and relatives, and are among the essential tasks that must be carried out even during heatwaves or droughts. A woman farmer, for example, may have to work a "double shift" that exposes her to extreme heat twice over: working in the field or watering crops by hand under a scorching sun, and then, on returning home, continuing to prepare meals for her family in a hot kitchen.
Women can be more affected by heat-related health problems, particularly where they spend most of their time indoors. Preparing food in homes that cannot be kept cool, working in poorly ventilated garment workshops or spending long hours in crowded markets all increase women's exposure to heat.
Women working informally face greater difficulty in accessing workplace measures that protect against heat. They are often unable to benefit from basic protections such as the right to take a break during the hottest hours of the day, adequate rest areas or safe working conditions. Extreme heat also lowers productivity, which can result in loss of income for women in informal work.
Ali Saltan/2025
Extreme heat and violence against women
Extreme heat can increase existing stress and tension, particularly for people living under physical and emotional pressure who lack access to green spaces, cooling facilities or adequate support.
This effect is not limited to discomfort and irritability. Research shows that extreme temperatures are associated with an increase in incidents of violence, and that this includes cases of violence against women and domestic violence.
These risks often compound one another. During a heatwave, for example, women and girls may be forced to remain in the same home as family members who use violence. In such situations the risk of being subjected to violence rises, while the heat may also prevent them from reaching safer places.
Research further shows that extreme temperatures are associated with increases in violent crime, the intensification of regional conflicts and mass displacement. These risks worsen where rising temperatures deepen drought and food insecurity. In many parts of the world, as families struggle to cope with dwindling natural resources and livelihoods, girls can face a greater risk of child marriage.
Signs of heat-related illness
Heat stress: When high temperatures exceed the body's natural capacity to cool itself, you may feel physically and mentally exhausted. Heat stress can aggravate existing health conditions such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and asthma. Drink water, rest and move to a cooler environment as soon as possible.
Heat exhaustion: Prolonged exposure to high temperatures can cause dizziness, nausea, heavy sweating, rapid breathing and muscle cramps. When these signs appear, it is important to rest in the shade or in a cool area, take in enough fluids and cool the body down.
Heatstroke: Heatstroke is a serious condition that can lead to lasting health damage or death and requires immediate medical attention. Confusion, dry and hot skin, nausea, seizures and loss of consciousness are among the most common signs. When these signs appear, emergency medical services should be contacted immediately.
At a time when temperature records are being broken one after another, we can both see and feel that far more must be done to mitigate the effects of climate change and to adapt to them. Working together with feminist movements and climate justice advocates, UN Women seeks to ensure that the solutions being developed take account of how and why women and girls are disproportionately affected by the climate crisis.
UN Women:
Strengthens and supports women's leadership in climate solutions.
Advocates for the production and use of sex-disaggregated data in order to make vulnerabilities linked to extreme heat visible.
Supports the implementation of the Belém Gender Action Plan, which aims to strengthen gender equality in climate action.
Works directly with women farmers to build resilience to the climate crisis.
Promotes a more equal distribution of unpaid care work and the recognition of its economic and social value.
Develops gender-responsive policy and practice recommendations in humanitarian action and disaster risk reduction that respond to the needs of women and girls.
Supports coordination across the United Nations system to help ensure that climate solutions are sustainable, effective and equitable.
