United Kingdom: According to recent studies, people with cardiovascular disease are more at risk of dying in extremely cold temperatures. A study published in the journal Circulation warned people who suffered from conditions such as an irregular heartbeat were at greater risk whenever the weather became harsh as freezing conditions brought heavy snow to most of the UK overnight.

Researchers discovered that exceptionally cold days contributed to an extra nine cardiovascular deaths for every 1,000 deaths. The trend was less pronounced on days of extreme heat, which accounted for an additional two deaths, as per the reports.

The UK saw temperatures above 40°C during the summer, which is when the number of excess fatalities among people over 65 rose to its highest level since 2004. People with heart failure were shown to have the highest number of additional deaths among all heart disease types, with nearly 13 occurring on severely cold and nearly three happening on extremely hot days.

The Multi-Country Multi-City Collaborative Research Network carried out the international study that was subjected to peer assessment. Data for more than 32 million fatalities from cardiovascular disease, the world’s leading cause of death, were examined for 27 nations on five continents between 1979 and 2019.

According to the statement, deaths were compared to the hottest and the coldest 2.5 percent of days for each city with those on the days which had “optimal temperature”, defined as the temperature associated with the lowest rates of deaths.

However, the researchers says that more work is needed to develop strategies to mitigate the impact of extreme temperatures in the face of increasing climate change.

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