Effect of unemployment on infant health

Abstract

Japan has over several decades, witnessed a continuous decline in the birth weight, a key indicator of infant health. To estimate the impact of economic conditions on infant health with a focus on unemployment and contingent employment, this study uses Japanese prefectural panel data from 1975 to 2010 with five-year intervals. We find that, until the 1990s, high rates of unemployment increased the share of low-birth-weight babies and decreased the average birth weight; however, this trend has declined significantly after the 2000s. In contrast, high rates of contingent employment led to low birth weight even after 2000. These results reflect a recent trend of more young contingent workers experiencing lower economic welfare as compared with the young unemployed. Our results imply that the significant decline in Japan's birth weight can be attributed to unfavorable changes in the country's labor market conditions.