It turns out that older women are more susceptible to high heat and humidity then older men. Older women feel it more! (In science speak: women are physiologically more vulnerable to high heat and humidity, that is, heat stress vulnerability)
Researchers found that middle-aged and older women were affected by heat at lower temperature and humidity combinations than middle-aged and older men. Women between the ages of 40 and 64 are as vulnerable as men 65 years and older. The researchers said that biological sex (male or female) and age appear to be the primary drivers of heat vulnerability among healthy people.
There were no differences in heat vulnerability between male and female younger adults. Also, fitness of individuals made very little difference in heat vulnerability.
Researchers tested the heat thresholds (combined heat and humidity) of 72 participants between the ages of 42 and 92 years in a specialized environmental chamber. Participants swallowed a special device which measured their core temperature throughout the experiment. NOTE: When core temperatures rise, people are more vulnerable to heat exhaustion, heat stroke, and even death.
From Science Daily: Older women more vulnerable to heat than their male peers, researchers find
As global climate change causes extreme heat waves to become more common around the world, epidemiological studies have shown that heat kills more women than men. Now, a new study by researchers at Penn State has found that older women are physiologically more vulnerable to high heat and humidity than older men, and that women between the ages of 40 and 64 are as vulnerable as men 65 years of age or older. This is the first study to determine this disparity exists due to physiological differences rather than because women live longer than men -- leaving a larger population of older women than older men. ...continue reading "Older Women Are More Vulnerable to High Summer Heat"