Extreme heat can worsen the side effects of medications used to treat depression and bipolar disorder

• Extreme heat can worsen the negative side effects of several psychiatric medications, experts told the NYT.
• Those who take lithium or antidepressants are particularly vulnerable to this summer's heat wave.

The extreme heat affecting millions across the world this summer may be taking an extra toll on those who take certain psychiatric medications, health experts say.

Several physicians told The New York Times that physicians and patients alike must be wary of the effects heat has on psychiatric medications — and given that the climate crisis is contributing to a warming planet, this is likely to become a yearly issue.

"It is unfortunately true that this may be the coolest summer for the rest of our lives, which is unsettling to reckon with," Britt Wray, director of Stanford University's program on climate change and mental health, told the Times.

For those who take lithium — a mood-stabilizing medication typically used to treat bipolar disorder — extreme sweating can cause the medication to concentrate in toxic levels, which can sometimes prove deadly, psychiatrist Asim Shah told the Times.

And several antidepressants can actually increase your chance of heat stroke because they can either make you sweat too much or too little, Insider previously reported.

"We need to prepare our patients who take these medicines, which interact with sunlight," Shah told the Times. "Physicians also need to be more aware."

The heat's impact on mental health can also intersect with other life stressors, exacerbating its negative consequences even further.

"People living with mental illness are also more likely to live in poverty or to have co-occurring substance use disorders, which may make it more challenging for them to cope or adapt to changes," according to the American Psychiatric Association.