title: The Long-term Health Effects of Fetal Malnutrition: Evidence from the 1959-1961 China Great Leap Forward Famine.
abstract: We report evidence of long-term adverse health impacts of fetal malnutrition exposure of middle-aged survivors of the 1959-1961 China Famine using data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. We find that fetal exposure to malnutrition has large and long-lasting impacts on both physical health and cognitive abilities, including the risks of suffering a stroke, physical disabilities in speech, walking and vision, and measures of mental acuity even half a century after the tragic event. Our findings imply that policies and programs that improve the nutritional status of pregnant women yield benefits on the health of a fetus that extend through the life cycle in the form of reduced physical and mental impairment.
authors.affiliation: School of Economics, Singapore Management University, Singapore.
authors.forename: Seonghoon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Economics, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
authors.forename: Belton
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fleisher
authors.affiliation: School of Economics, Singapore Management University, Singapore.
authors.forename: Jessica Ya
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Sun
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001723:Birth Rate; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005260:Female; D048070:Fetal Nutrition Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008603:Mental Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D009026:Mortality; D011247:Pregnancy; D035503:Sociobiology; D013217:Starvation / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013997:Time Factors
keywords: China Famine; fetal origin hypothesis; health; malnutrition