Exposure to extreme hot or cold temperatures can affect adolescents’ mental health and behavior, according to a new study co-authored by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health’s Henning Tiemeier.
Researchers looked at psychiatric data collected from nearly 5,000 teenagers in Spain and the Netherlands, and temperatures the kids were exposed to over a two-month period. They found that cold temperatures in the Netherlands were associated with mental health issues directed inwards, such as anxiety, depression, and social withdrawal. Hot temperatures in Spain were associated with more attention problems. The researchers didn’t find any associations of temperature with “externalizing” mental health issues such as aggression.
Tiemeier is Sumner and Esther Feldberg Professor of Maternal and Child Health. The study was co-authored by researchers from Spanish and Dutch institutions including Barcelona Institute for Global Health and Erasmus University Medical Center.
Read HealthDay coverage: Severe Temperature Swings Impacting Teen Mental Health, Study Finds
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Henning Tiemeier
