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Smallpox really did reduce height: a reply to Razzell

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  • Timothy Leunig
  • Hans-Joachim Voth

Abstract

Razzell argues that the quality of smallpox recording in the Marine Society data set is so poor that ‘the impact of smallpox on average height cannot be settled by analysis of the Marine Society data set’. We believe that this grossly overstates the problems of the records, and is based on a careless reading of the original records on his part. Furthermore, insofar as his claim that some of the boys who are recorded as escaping smallpox had in fact suffered the disease, the direction of bias strengthens rather than weakens the statistical evidence that smallpox reduced height.
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  • Timothy Leunig & Hans-Joachim Voth, 2001. "Smallpox really did reduce height: a reply to Razzell," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 54(1), pages 110-114, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:ehsrev:v:54:y:2001:i:1:p:110-114
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1111/1468-0289.00187
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    1. Hans-Joachim Voth & Timothy Leunig, 1996. "Did smallpox reduce height? Stature and the standard of living in London, 1770-1873," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 49(3), pages 541-560, August.
    2. Crafts, N F R, 1987. "Cliometrics, 1971-1986: A Survey," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 2(3), pages 171-192, July.
    3. Roderick Floud & Kenneth Wachter & Annabel Gregory, 1990. "Height, Health, and History: Nutritional Status in the United Kingdom, 1750-1980," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number flou90-1, March.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Steckel, Richard H., 2009. "Heights and human welfare: Recent developments and new directions," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 46(1), pages 1-23, January.
    3. Galofré-Vilà, Gregori, 2018. "Growth and maturity: A quantitative systematic review and network analysis in anthropometric history," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 107-118.
    4. Deborah Oxley, 2003. "‘The seat of death and terror’: urbanization, stunting, and smallpox," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 56(4), pages 623-656, November.

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