Anyone above 60 needs to reconsider their summer plans. With temperatures set to exceed last year’s scorching summer, individuals in their golden years need to watch out for dehydration and heat stroke since they could struggle with weather that might be too hot for their bodies to handle, Time reports.

It’s going to be a trend thanks to a growing older population and climate change. Longer life expectancies mean that 21% of the global population will be 60 or more by 2050 (that’s 2.1 bn people), reports the World Health Organization.

246 mn people above 69 will be living in <37.5° climes — that’s 23% of the world’s population, in comparison to 14% today — reveals the study conducted by Giacomo Falchetta, a scientist at the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change in Italy.

The factors driving heat exposure for older adults are different between regions. Falchetta and his team found that in temperate regions like North America and Europe, rising global temperatures will be the main factor. Meanwhile, in warmer areas like Asia and Africa, population growth and longer lifespans will play a bigger role.

What can be done? If the areas with older populations vulnerable to heat-related health issues are identified, then governments would be able to redirect healthcare resources and infrastructure, like power grids to handle air conditioning electricity demand, cooling centers, and additional urban green spaces, Falchetta suggests.

Everyone needs to be on board to mitigate this issue. “We hope to engage public-health planners, national economic planners, and international organizations such as the World Health Organization and the U.N. Development Programme to provide a sense for what we expect the needs of an aging population will be in a warmer world,” says Falchetta.

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