How to protect against heat and humidity as summer nears

By John Roach, AccuWeather staff writer

Updated May. 21, 2020 6:03 PM

AccuWeather on Thursday introduced a new forecasting innovation today for current and forecast indoor humidity conditions for homes and buildings in order to promote better health, comfort and safer conditions. 

The AccuWeather Indoor Humidity product is a newly added feature to the company’s free digital weather forecasting tools. The data it provides is generated using a proprietary patent-pending algorithm developed exclusively by AccuWeather expert meteorologists and scientists to predict the level of moisture in the air inside a home or building. 

AccuWeather’s exclusive Indoor Humidity current and forecast conditions tool provides critical information to help minimize the harmful effects on people from several diseases and conditions.

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“People do not normally think of very dry air or high humidity accompanied by hot temperatures as extreme weather, yet these conditions represent real threats to our health and welfare,” said Dr. Joel N. Myers, AccuWeather Founder and CEO.  “Each year, more people die in the U.S. due to extreme heat and humidity on average than they do from hurricanes, lightning and tornadoes combined.”

On average, 658 Americans a year die from extreme heat, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), while 152 die on average annually from tornadoes (80), lightning (55) and hurricanes (17) combined. 

High humidity combined with very hot air can be dangerous and have an adverse effect on the human body, especially in buildings that lack air conditioning. Because the air feels hotter than the temperature when the humidity is high and there is little cooling from airflow, such conditions can contribute to feelings of low energy and lethargy. In addition, overheating as a result of a body’s inability to effectively let out heat can negatively impact a person’s health in conditions of heat and high humidity.

“That’s why we introduced the patented AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature and AccuWeather RealFeel Shade™, to help people have a better understanding of how the air feels for greater safety and comfort,” Myers said. “Now we offer this new unique tool to help our users make changes to prepare for humidity levels indoors for the benefit of their health and comfort.” 

From the three-day forecast page, AccuWeather users can click on the works ‘Current Weather’ as shown in the screenshot above.

Once an AccuWeather user navigates to the current weather conditions page, the indoor humidity reading appears along with data on other meteorological conditions supplied by AccuWeather.

The purpose of the new tool is to show how it feels inside, to show how moisture may play a role in health concerns and to give people the information they need to take action. For example, if it’s too moist, a person could have problems breathing and it also would open the opportunity for mold to grow.

The scale helps you make decisions about when a dehumidifier may be important during the summer, or conversely, when it is the optimal time for a humidifier in the winter.

AccuWeather launched the new product at a time when people are spending more time at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the information the tool provides is meant to be beneficial year-round. 

The AccuWeather Indoor Humidity current and forecast conditions tool alerts users to indoor humidity conditions, with readings that range from “dangerously dry” to “ideal” to “dangerously humid” and verbal descriptions to accompany the actual indoor humidity percentage as shown on accuweather.com and soon on AccuWeather's apps. 

The indoor humidity forecast is perhaps most valuable in wintertime when dry inside air can cause serious health risks.

Very dry indoor conditions, for example, normally found during the coldest months of the year, especially in northern climates, hasten the spread of viruses, when people’s nasal passages lack of moisture needed to trap viruses before they enter the body. During these months, indoor air is typically drier due to heating in homes and buildings that do not have a humidifier that adds moisture to the air.

Each year more people die in the U.S. due to extreme heat and humidity on average than they do from hurricanes, lightning and tornadoes combined.

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