Sizzling summer heat may be over for this year in Florida, but a new report from the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) predicts a growing number of severe heat waves for the Sunshine State, a potentially deadly side effect of global warming. The report estimates by 2080, Florida will have 22 more days per year of extremely high temperatures than it did 100 years earlier.

Dr. Don Mellman, with Physicians for Social Responsibility, a group that worked with NWF on the report, says seniors will be among those hardest hit. According to Mellman, extreme heat increases air pollution and can trigger asthma, respiratory distress, strokes and heart attacks.

“It’s a public health disaster. There are more deaths from heat than from any other natural disaster. In Florida, the people at risk are the very, very young, the very infirm, but also the elderly.”

Mellman says the elderly cannot adapt in such heat waves as the one in Europe in 2003 that resulted in more than 30,000 deaths. Ann Vanek-Dasovich with the Florida Wildlife Federation adds the state is expected to have the highest number of elderly poor residents in the nation in the coming years – many of whom already face tough choices.

“These are the most vulnerable of our population. They have to make the choice between air-conditioning and food – and nobody should have to make that choice.”

This summer’s relatively cooler temperatures may give Floridians of all ages a false sense of security, she adds, when it comes to climate change.

“It can cause us to be complacent and less prepared for the hot years that are coming. But there’s no mistake – the trend clearly shows that we’re going to have more hot years on the way. And, that means more death and more risk.”

The NWF recommends public policy changes to make extreme heat more bearable – systems of heat watches and warnings, public cooling places, and assistance for cooling and weatherizing low-income homes, to name a few. However, it also says the report findings are another wakeup call, to boost efforts to reduce global warming pollution.

See the report online, at www.nwf.org.