title: Impact of the Fukushima nuclear accident on obesity of children in Japan (2008-2014).
abstract: This study used prefecture-level panel data from Japan for the period 2008-2014 to investigate the influence of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident on the body mass index (BMI) z-score and obesity rates of children over time. I adopted a difference-in-differences approach and found the following: (1) for the cohort aged 5-7 years in 2010, the BMI z-score and obesity rates in disaster-affected areas were higher than in other areas, although this was not observed for the other cohorts; (2) for the cohort aged 5-7 years in 2010, the influence of the accident persisted even after 3 years; and (3) the differences in the BMI z-score and obesity rate before and after the accident were greater for Fukushima Prefecture than for the other affected areas (Iwate and Miyagi prefectures). I infer that health-conscious parents, whose children had lower BMIs, may have moved from Fukushima, thereby increasing the BMI z-score of the child population living in Fukushima by around 0.05 for the cohort aged 5-7 years. The enforced reduction in physical activity increased the BMI z-score of children living in Fukushima by around 0.19 for that cohort.
authors: Department of Economics, Seinan Gakuin University, 6-2-92 Nishijin, Sawara-ku , Fukuoka 814-8511, Japan. Electronic address: yamaei@seinan-gu.ac.jp.
authors: Eiji
authors: E
authors: Yamamura
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D017677:Age Distribution; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D062406:Fukushima Nuclear Accident; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D063766:Pediatric Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D017678:Sex Distribution; D062410:Snacks; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
keywords: Body mass index; Fukushima; Nuclear accident; Obesity