Preparing for Heat Waves - Enhancing Human Thermophysiological Resilience

Launched by MAASTRICHT UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER · Apr 24, 2024

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is studying how to help people better handle extreme heat, which is becoming more common due to climate change. The researchers want to find out if a practical method of getting used to heat—by combining both passive (like sitting in a warm room) and active (like exercise) exposure—can improve how the body manages heat, especially for those who are overweight. The goal is to create helpful guidelines for people at risk of heat-related health issues, particularly older adults who don't exercise much.

To participate in this study, you need to be a healthy adult aged 60 to 80 with a body mass index (BMI) between 25 and 30, which means you are considered overweight. You should not have any chronic heart conditions or be regularly exercising, and there are a few other criteria to ensure safety. If you join the study, you can expect to engage in activities designed to help your body adapt to heat, which could be beneficial for your health during hot weather. It’s important to know that the trial is not yet recruiting participants, but it aims to provide insights that could help many people cope with heat in the future.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Healthy males and females
• • 60 to 80 years
• • BMI 25-30 kg/m2
• • Sedentary (\<2h exercise/week)
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Presence of chronic cardiovascular disease, as determined by medical history and physical examination
• • Participating in a structured exercise program
• • Taking hot baths/saunas regularly
• • Travelled for a prolonged time to destinations with elevated temperatures the last 3 months
• • Pre-existing T2DM
• • Blood donation within a month of study initiation
• • People with low haemoglobin concentration (males: Hb = 13.5-17.5 g/dL, females: Hb = 11.5-15.5 g/dL)
• • Recent participation in biomedical study (less than 1 month)
• • Using any medication that may influence glucose or lipid metabolism (beta-blockers, thyroid medications, stimulants, antidepressants, anticoagulants)
• • Smoking or abuse of alcohol