Analysis of 9,763 adults in a national U.S. sample examined how race-ethnicity moderates the relationship between age and exposure to heat waves, severe weather, and wildfire events. Older adults and people of color reported disproportionate exposure, indicating that environmental burden is unevenly distributed across demographic groups. Cumulative exposure to extreme heat and wildfire smoke carries direct physiological consequences for cardiovascular, respiratory, and thermoregulatory function in later life.
Key Points
- National sample of 9,763 adults assessed across three extreme weather categories
- Race-ethnicity moderated the association between age and exposure
- Older adults and people of color reported disproportionate environmental exposure
Longevity Analysis
Environmental exposure belongs on the same risk ledger as diet, movement, and sleep. Repeated heat stress taxes thermoregulation and cardiovascular reserve, while wildfire particulate loads the airways and detoxification pathways — burdens that compound with the reduced physiological reserve of advancing age. Identifying and reducing these exposures, through air filtration, cooling access, and exposure-aware planning, precedes any supplement or intervention aimed at resilience, and the demographic patterning here indicates where that work is most urgent.
Original published by SAGE Research on Aging, by Roger Wong, Brian C. Ganeles1Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Norton College of Medicine, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA2Department of Geriatrics, Norton College of Medicine, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA3Norton College of Medicine, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA.