Climate Facts: Extreme heat could accelerate heart diseases by 2050, study finds

The complexities of climate change and its associated jargon can prove difficult to digest.

TheCable’s quick climate facts will help demystify these concepts through easy-to-understand and straight-to-the-point explanations.

Here are some to keep at the tip of your fingers:

• A research published in the European Heart Journal says 49,483 years of healthy lives were lost every year to cardiovascular disease caused by extreme heat.
• The study suggests that this figure could double, or even triple by 2050, depending on different greenhouse gas emission scenarios.
• A new report by United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) says emissions from the building sector stopped rising for the first time since 2020.
• UNEP noted that despite this progress, the sector remains a key driver of the climate crisis, consuming 32 percent of global energy and contributing to 34 percent of global CO2 emissions.
• The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) says global sea levels rose 0.23 inches in 2024 compared to the predicted 0.17 inches expected for the year.
• NASA said an unusual amount of ocean warming, combined with meltwater from land-based ice such as glaciers, led to sea level rise last year.