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Studying the Child Obesity Epidemic With Natural Experiments

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Author Info
Robert Sandy () (Department of Economics, Indiana Unviersity-Purdue University Indianapolis)
Gilbert Liu
John Ottensmann
Rusty Tchernis
Jeffrey Wilson

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Abstract

We utilize clinical records of well successive child visits by the same child at clinics in Indianapolis to estimate the effects on their weights of changes in environment near their home. Our sample is limited to children who resided at the same address before and after the environmental change and in this initial investigation, are in the age range 3 through 12. Our environmental factors are fast food restaurants, supermarkets, parks, trails, and violent crimes. We looked for responses to these factors changing within buffers of 0.1, 0.25, 0.5, and 1 mile. The strongest effects were at the closest distances. None of the factors measured within a mile circle had an effect. Fast food restaurants moving close to the child’s home raised their weight. Supermarkets moving near the home lowered their weights. Additional violent crimes raised weights directly and indirectly by attenuating the weight reducing effects of parks and trails. The parks and trails are crudely measured by area and distance within the buffers. We are in the process of creating precise annual measures of three types of recreational amenities from the interpretation of aerial photographs.

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File URL: http://www.iupui.edu/~econ/workingpapers/wp200801.pdf
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Publisher Info
Paper provided by Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, Department of Economics in its series Working Papers with number wp200801.

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Length: 40 pages
Date of creation: Feb 2008
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:iup:wpaper:wp200801

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Postal: Cavanaugh Hall 516, 425 University Boulevard, Indianapolis, IN 46202
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Web page: http://www.iupui.edu/~econ/
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Related research
Keywords: Obesity; Natural Experiment;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
I1 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health
I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Production

References listed on IDEAS
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  1. Michael Anderson & David Matsa, 2007. "Are Restaurants Really Supersizing America?," Department of Agricultural & Resource Economics, UC Berkeley, Working Paper Series 1056, Department of Agricultural & Resource Economics, UC Berkeley. [Downloadable!]
  2. John Cawley & Chad D. Meyerhoefer & David Newhouse, 2005. "The Impact of State Physical Education Requirements on Youth Physical Activity and Overweight," NBER Working Papers 11411, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  3. Daniel Millimet & Rusty Tchernis & Muna Hussain, 2007. "School Nutrition Programs and the Incidence of Childhood Obesity," Caepr Working Papers 2007-014, Center for Applied Economics and Policy Research, Economics Department, Indiana University Bloomington. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  4. Neeraj Kaushal, 2007. "Do Food Stamps Cause Obesity? Evidence from Immigrant Experience," NBER Working Papers 12849, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
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