Extreme heat doubles youth mental‑health hospitalisations in New South Wales

A University of Sydney study of 720,000 hospital admissions in New South Wales between 2001 and 2022 found that when daily temperatures reached the top 1 % of records, the risk of admission for severe mental‑health conditions among people aged 24 and younger doubled in the warmer months and tripled in the cooler months. The research, published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, projects a 6 %–7 % rise in heat‑related mental‑health admissions by the end of the century as global temperatures increase. Conditions examined included depression, schizophrenia, substance misuse, eating disorders and self‑harm, encompassing only the most serious cases requiring inpatient care.

The authors suggest the rapid rise in admissions after heat spikes points to a physiological response, possibly linked to sleep disruption, stress, altered brain function and increased impulsivity or substance use. They call for heat‑health policies to incorporate mental‑health risks. “As temperatures rise, we see a significant increase in admissions among younger populations,” said lead researcher Dr Wen‑Qiang He.

The findings highlight a growing public‑health concern at the intersection of climate change and youth mental wellbeing.