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Parental Influences on Health and Longevity: Lessons from a Large Sample of Adoptees

Author

Listed:
  • Lindahl, Mikael

    () (Gothenburg University, CESifo, IFAU, IZA and UCLS)

  • Lundberg, Evelina

    () (Uppsala University and UCLS)

  • Palme, Mårten

    () (Stockholm University and IZA)

  • Simeonova, Emilia

    () (Johns Hopkins University and NBER)

Abstract

To what extent is the length of our lives determined by pre-birth factors? And to what extent is it affected by parental resources during our upbringing that can be influenced by public policy? We study the formation of adult health and mortality using data on about 21,000 adoptees born between 1940 and 1967. The data include detailed information on both biological and adopting parents. We find that the health of the biological parents affects the health of their adopted children. Thus, we confirm that genes and conditions in utero are important intergenerational transmission channels for long-term health. However, we also find strong evidence that the educational attainment of the adopting mother has a significant impact on the health of her adoptive children, suggesting that family environment and resources in the post-birth years have long-term consequences for children’s health.

Suggested Citation

  • Lindahl, Mikael & Lundberg, Evelina & Palme, Mårten & Simeonova, Emilia, 2016. "Parental Influences on Health and Longevity: Lessons from a Large Sample of Adoptees," Research Papers in Economics 2016:1, Stockholm University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:sunrpe:2016_0001
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Sandra E. Black & Paul J. Devereux & Petter Lundborg & Kaveh Majlesi, 2015. "Poor Little Rich Kids? - The Determinants of the Intergenerational Transmission of Wealth," Working Papers 201516, School of Economics, University College Dublin.
    2. Anders Björklund & Mikael Lindahl & Erik Plug, 2006. "The Origins of Intergenerational Associations: Lessons from Swedish Adoption Data," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 121(3), pages 999-1028.
    3. Angus Deaton, 2003. "Health, Inequality, and Economic Development," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 41(1), pages 113-158, March.
    4. Joseph G. Altonji & Todd E. Elder & Christopher R. Taber, 2005. "Selection on Observed and Unobserved Variables: Assessing the Effectiveness of Catholic Schools," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 113(1), pages 151-184, February.
    5. Classen, Timothy J., 2010. "Measures of the intergenerational transmission of body mass index between mothers and their children in the United States, 1981-2004," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 8(1), pages 30-43, March.
    6. Bellows, John & Miguel, Edward, 2009. "War and local collective action in Sierra Leone," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(11-12), pages 1144-1157, December.
    7. repec:pri:cheawb:case_paxson_economic_status_paper is not listed on IDEAS
    8. David Cesarini & Erik Lindqvist & Robert Östling & Björn Wallace, 2016. "Wealth, Health, and Child Development: Evidence from Administrative Data on Swedish Lottery Players," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 131(2), pages 687-738.
    9. Janet Currie & Enrico Moretti, 2002. "Mother's Education and the Intergenerational Transmission of Human Capital: Evidence from College Openings and Longitudinal Data," NBER Working Papers 9360, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    11. Björklund, Anders & Lindahl, Mikael & Plug, Erik, 2004. "Intergenerational Effects in Sweden: What Can We Learn from Adoption Data?," IZA Discussion Papers 1194, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
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    13. Joshua Goodman & Janet Currie, "undated". "Parental Socioeconomic Status, Child Health, and Human Capital," Working Paper 95991, Harvard University OpenScholar.
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    Cited by:

    1. Maria Zumbuehl & Thomas Dohmen & Gerard Pfann, 2018. "Parental Involvement and the Intergenerational Transmission of Economic Preferences and Attitudes," CRC TR 224 Discussion Paper Series crctr224_022_2018, University of Bonn and University of Mannheim, Germany.
    2. repec:eee:ehbiol:v:26:y:2017:i:c:p:96-111 is not listed on IDEAS

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Health inequality; mortality; Pre- versus post-birth decomposition;

    JEL classification:

    • I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
    • I14 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health and Inequality
    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality

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