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The phenomenon of summer diarrhea and its waning, 1910-1930⁎

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  • Anderson, D. Mark
  • Rees, Daniel I.
  • Wang, Tianyi

Abstract

During the first two decades of the 20th century, diarrheal deaths among American infants and children surged every summer. Although we still do not know what pathogen (or pathogens) caused this phenomenon, the consensus view is that it was eventually controlled through public health efforts at the municipal level. Using data from 26 major American cities for the period 1910-1930, we document the phenomenon of summer diarrhea and explore its dissipation. We find that water filtration is associated with a 15 percent reduction in diarrheal mortality among children under the age of two during the non-summer months, but does not seem to have had an effect on diarrheal mortality during the summer. In general, we find little evidence to suggest that public health interventions undertaken at the municipal level contributed to the dissipation of summer diarrhea.

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  • Anderson, D. Mark & Rees, Daniel I. & Wang, Tianyi, 2020. "The phenomenon of summer diarrhea and its waning, 1910-1930⁎," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:exehis:v:78:y:2020:i:c:s0014498320300322
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eeh.2020.101341
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Anderson, D. Mark & Charles, Kerwin Kofi & Rees, Daniel I. & Wang, Tianyi, 2021. "Water purification efforts and the black‐white infant mortality gap, 1906–1938," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 122(C).
    2. D. Mark Anderson & Kerwin Kofi Charles & Michael McKelligott & Daniel I. Rees, 2022. "Safeguarding Consumers Through Minimum Quality Standards: Milk Inspections and Urban Mortality, 1880-1910," NBER Working Papers 30063, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.

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    JEL classification:

    • I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
    • N3 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy
    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming

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