Exploiting unique administrative longitudinal data sets on medical services provided to mothers before- and after- delivery, we estimate the causal effects of two major distinct parental leave reforms on maternal health outcomes, over a period of 5 years postpartum. The health outcomes are...

This paper addresses the question of whether the effect of parental drinking on children’s later consumption of alcohol – which is frequently found to be of positive sign – exhibits a certain pattern of heterogeneity. In particular, if this effect is more prominent in the upper tail than...

Throughout the years spanned by the U.S. Vital Statistics Linked Birth and Infant Death Data (1983-2002), birth weights are measured most precisely for children of white and highly educated mothers. As a result, less healthy children, who are more likely to be of low socioeconomic status, are...

This paper addresses the question of whether the effect of parental drinking on children’s later consumption of alcohol - which is frequently found to be of positive sign - exhibits a certain pattern of heterogeneity. In particular, if this effect is more prominent in the upper tail than...

Food security and obesity represent two of the most significant public health issues. However, little is known about how these issues are intertwined. Here, we assess the causal relationship between food security during early childhood and relatively long-run measures of child health....

Although the theoretical trade-off between the quantity and quality of children is well-established, empirical evidence supporting such a causal relationship - particularly on child health - is limited. We use two measures of child health to asses the quantity-quality trade-off across the entire...

Although the theoretical trade-off between the quantity and quality of children is well-established, empirical evidence supporting such a causal relationship - particularly on child health - is limited. We use two measures of child health to asses the quantity-quality trade-off across the entire...

Food security and obesity represent two of the most significant public health issues. However, little is known about how these issues are intertwined. Here, we assess the causal relationship between food security during early childhood and relatively long-run measures of child health....

The incidence of adiposity in the early years of life has outgrown the prevalence rate in older children and adolescents globally; however, the relationships between unemployment and weight are predominantly studied in adults. This study examines the relationship between changing economic...

Health at birth is an important indicator of human capital development over the life course. This paper uses longitudinal data from the Young Lives survey and employs instrumental variable regression models to estimate the effect of birth weight on cognitive development during childhood in...