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Pre- and Post-Birth Components of Intergenerational Persistence in Health and Longevity: Lessons from a Large Sample of Adoptees

Author

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  • Björkegren, Evelina

    () (Uppsala University)

  • Lindahl, Mikael

    () (University of Gothenburg)

  • Palme, Mårten

    () (Stockholm University)

  • Simeonova, Emilia

    () (Johns Hopkins University)

Abstract

We use data on a large sample of Swedish-born adoptees and their biological and adopting parents to decompose the persistence in health inequality across generations into pre-birth and post-birth components. We use three sets of measures for health outcomes in the second generation: mortality, measures based on data on hospitalization and, finally, measures using birth outcomes for the third generation. The results show that all of the persistence in mortality is transmitted solely via pre-birth factors, while the results for the hospitalization measures suggest that at least three quarters of the intergenerational persistence in health is attributable to the biological parents.

Suggested Citation

  • Björkegren, Evelina & Lindahl, Mikael & Palme, Mårten & Simeonova, Emilia, 2019. "Pre- and Post-Birth Components of Intergenerational Persistence in Health and Longevity: Lessons from a Large Sample of Adoptees," IZA Discussion Papers 12451, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12451
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    Cited by:

    1. Norén, Anna, 2020. "Sick of my parents? Consequences of parental ill health on adult children," Working Paper Series 2020:1, IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    health inequality; intergenerational transmission; nature and nurture;

    JEL classification:

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

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