Measuring Intra-Household Inequality : Explorations using the Body Mass Index

This paper tests for relationships between level of well-being and inequality at both inter-country and intra-household levels, but using a different indicator of well-being, the body mass index (BMI). BMI captures individual's consumption relative to their needs, and reflects a combination of both consumption (of calories, sanitation, and health care) and health status, two important dimensions of well-being. We do not find any evidence to support either the across country Kuznets curve or the intra-household Kuznets curve. Instead, we find consistent evidence for an increase in BMI inequality as average living standards (of countries or households) improve. A distinct and surprising result is that between one half and two-thirds of BMI inequality is accounted for by within-household BMI. This finding clearly suggests that a large share of the inequality that is measured using household surveys which assumes that the well-being of all household members is the same, is likely grossly under-estimating overall inequality in a given country. In examining the within-household ratios of adult to child body mass indexes we also find some evidence that health shocks are both large and affect children more than adults; although, there are also indications that in households with chronic food deficits, there is an attempt to protect young children from food and related stresses that contribut to low BMI. It is thus clear that policies and programs that target households, not individuals, will be largely ineffective