Totally Cooked: Episode 14 – Can humans survive a future of extreme heat?

Can the human body survive climate change? That’s the burning question in this episode of Totally Cooked. With the world already experiencing more frequent and intense heatwaves, we sit down with Professor Ollie Jay from the University of Sydney to explore how our bodies respond to extreme heat, and what happens when they can’t keep up.

Ollie walks your co-hosts Professor Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick and Iain Strachan through the science of sweating, hydration, and heat stress, and explains the critical tipping points between heat exhaustion and deadly heatstroke. We discuss who’s most at risk, why heat is often overlooked as a killer, and what governments, communities and individuals can do to stay safe in a hotter world. We also find out what it’s like to sit in a room set to 54°C, and why your fan might not be helping as much as you think.

Plus, it’s quiz time: from Death Valley to the Ashes, the FIFA World Cup to the Sahara, we put Sarah and Ollie to the test with a scorcher of a quiz on record-breaking heat. If you’ve ever wondered whether climate change is cooking us alive (and how long we can keep turning up the thermostat) this episode has the answers.

Iain records Totally Cooked on the lands of the Bunurong People of the Kulin Nation. Sarah records Totally Cooked on the lands of the Ngunnawal and Ngambri people. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging and recognise their unique and continuing connection to the land, skies, waters, plants and animals.

Show Notes

In this episode, we look at:

• What extreme heat actually is, and how the human body keeps itself cool
• Why sweating and evaporation are essential — and how humidity can shut those systems down
• The difference between heat exhaustion and heatstroke, and what happens when core temperature rises too high
• Why older adults, pregnant people, outdoor workers and those with health conditions face greater heat risk
• What wet bulb temperature and WBGT measure, and the limits of using them to warn the public
• How climate change is driving more frequent and dangerous heat events across Australia
• The cooling strategies that work — from shade and airflow to cold water, wet clothing and self-dousing
• Common heat myths, and the truth about hydration, caffeine, alcohol and over-drinking
• What governments and communities can do to improve heat warnings, cooling access and public health responses
• The simple steps everyone can take to prepare for a heatwave

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This episode will be released and available to stream and download on Friday 5 December, 2025.

Watch on YouTube

Further Reading

European Space Agency (2013). Dasht-e Lut salt desert, Iran [online image]. Available at: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2013/11/Dasht-e_Lut_salt_desert_Iran (Accessed: 4 December 2025).

IPCC (2021). Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Summary for Policymakers. Contribution of Working Group I to the Sixth Assessment Report of the IPCC. https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1

IPCC (2022). Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Chapter 7: Health, wellbeing and the changing structure of communities. https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg2

Jay, O., et al. (2021). Reducing the health effects of hot weather and heat extremes: From personal cooling strategies to policy and public health responses. The Lancet, 398(10301), 709–724. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(21)01209-5

Kjellstrom, T., Briggs, D., Freyberg, C., Lemke, B., Otto, M., & Hyatt, O. (2016). Heat, human performance, and occupational health: A key issue for the assessment of global climate change impacts. Annual Review of Public Health, 37, 97–112. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-032315-021740

Raymond, C., Matthews, T. K. R., & Horton, R. M. (2020). The emergence of heat and humidity too severe for human tolerance. Science Advances, 6(19), eaaw1838. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aaw1838

Seneviratne, S. I., Zhang, X., Adnan, M., et al. (2021). Weather and climate extreme events in a changing climate. Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/downloads/report/IPCC_AR6_WGI_Chapter11.pdf

Sherwood, S. C. & Huber, M. (2010). An adaptability limit to climate change due to heat stress. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 107(21), 9552–9555. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0913352107

World Health Organization (WHO) (2021). Heat and health fact sheet. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/climate-change-heat-and-health

Why listen to Totally Cooked?

Because it’s time to feel empowered, not overwhelmed. Totally Cooked is a science-backed, straight-talking podcast about weather, climate change, and what it all means for life on Earth – especially here in Australia.

Hosted by climate scientist Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick and science communicator Iain Strachan, Totally Cooked breaks down how human activity is changing the Earth’s systems—from our skies to our seas—and what we can do about it.

From greenhouse gases to fire weather, supercomputers to Antarctic ice cores, this is climate science without the jargon, and where no subject is too complex or controversial.

Totally Cooked is for anyone who wants to understand the science of climate change—without needing a PhD. Whether you’re a high school student, policy maker, journalist, teacher, concerned citizen or just a little climate-curious, this podcast will give you the tools to think clearly and act confidently.

• Cut through the noise with clear, honest science.
• Understand the why behind climate change;
• Learn how climate change impacts real-world weather;
• Hear from the best researchers and scientists in their field and from around the world;

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