We investigate long-run effects of episodes of hunger experienced as a child on health status and behavioral outcomes in later life. We combine self-reported data on hunger experiences
from SHARELIFE, a retrospective survey conducted as part of SHARE in Europe in
2009, with administrative data on food supply (caloric rations) in post-war Germany. The
data suggest that individual behavior is a pathway between early life shocks and adult
health: We find that those who experienced hunger spend a larger fraction of income on
food. Taken together, our results confirm that in addition to the well-documented
biological channel from early life circumstances to adult health, there is also a behavioral pathway.
Dieser Eintrag ist Teil der Universitätsbibliographie.
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