Long term exposure to extreme heatwaves accelerates the body's ageing process according to a new study published in Nature Climate Change journal in August 2025.
The study Long-term impacts of heatwaves on accelerated ageing involved health data of 24,922 people in Taiwan for the period 2008 to 2022. It revealed that repeated heatwaves can age a person as much as smoking or drinking. The study findings suggest that moderate increases in cumulative heatwave exposure increase a person’s biological age — to an extent comparable to regular smoking or alcohol consumption.
The more the population is exposed to heatwaves, the more their organs age. This makes it evident that extreme heat can have invisible effects on the human body and accelerate our biological clock. Hence, heatwaves are often termed as silent peril.
A similar study conducted in Germany in 2023 and published in Environment International had also revealed that higher air temperatures are associated with faster ageing at the cellular level in human body. It When the body ages faster than its chronological age, the process is known as epigenetic age acceleration.
The researchers for their study made use of the findings of several medical investigations, including assessments of liver, lung and kidney function, blood pressure and inflammation, to calculate biological age.
The study findings reveal that the exposed population did demonstrate gradual adaptation to heatwave impacts over the 15-year period. The findings revealed that manual workers, rural residents and participants from communities with fewer air conditioners were found to be more susceptible to the health impacts.
This study highlights the need for targeted policies and interventions to strengthen adaptive capacity, delay ageing and promote healthy ageing.