The effect of maternal education on infant health:Evidence from an expansion of preschool facilities

Only recently there have been some attempts to establish the causal effects of maternal schooling on infant health. Most of the evidence comes from studies that look at extensions of schooling at the end of the school trajectory. This study estimates the effect of girls starting school earlier on health at birth of the next generation. The identification strategy uses a construction program of preschool facilities implemented in Uruguay by the mid 90’s. I exploit variation across regions and over time in the number of facilities built. I find that health at birth as measured by extreme prematurity improves for first-born children of mothers that were exposed to the reform. These results are robust to the latest advances in two-way fixed-effects methods. When exploring potential mechanisms, I find that maternal education increases preventive care during pregnancy, and reduces teenage fertility.