title: Do political factors matter in explaining under- and overweight outcomes in developing countries?
abstract: We construct a rich dataset covering 47 developing countries over the years 1990-2007, combining several micro and macro level data sources to explore the link between political factors and body mass index (BMI). We implement a heteroskedastic generalized ordered logit model allowing for different covariate effects across the BMI distribution and accounting for the unequal BMI dispersion by geographical area. We find that systems with democratic qualities are more likely to reduce under-weight, but increase overweight/obesity, whereas effective political competition does entail double-benefits in the form of reducing both under-weight and obesity. Our results are robust to the introduction of country fixed effects.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Health Economics and Management (IEMS) and Department of Economics (DEEP), University of Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fumagalli
authors.affiliation: Economics Division, School of Social Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK.
authors.forename: Emmanouil
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mentzakis
authors.affiliation: Health Economics Group, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, UK ; UKCRC Centre for Diet and Physical Activity, Institute for Public Health, Cambridge, UK.
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Suhrcke
keywords: BMI; Developing countries; Generalized ordered response models; Obesity