American researchers from Columbia University have discovered a connection between climate change and an increase in the number of visits to hospitals due to problems caused by alcohol and drugs. Article published In the scientific journal Communications Medicine (CommsMed).
Researchers examined data on 671.6 thousand visits to healthcare facilities related to alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, opioids and other drugs over the past 20 years.
The higher the temperature, the more people were admitted to hospital for alcohol-related reasons. The causes ranged from dehydration to injuries caused by drunk driving.
Scientists also noted an increase in drug-related hospitalizations as temperatures rose, but only up to a maximum of 18.8°C. According to experts, this threshold is because people prefer not to take psychoactive substances outside in the heat.
“We saw that there was an increase in hospital visits due to alcohol and substance addiction during periods when the temperature increased. Lead author Dr. “This highlights some of the potential impacts of climate change that are less obvious,” said Robbie M. Parks.
The report’s authors say public health needs to take action to warn people about the dangers of drinking and drug use in hot weather.
Previous scientists I learnedExcessive heat has a negative effect on the psyche.