Abstract
This study examines the determinants of child nutritional status in China, focusing specially on the household income effect. Data are drawn from China Health and Nutrition Survey, including 4 waves from 1991 to 2000. The empirical relationship between nutritional status and income, on the one hand and other effect factors like mother's height, maternal education, location (urban vs. rural, north vs. south) is investigated. Ordinary Least Squares, Random Effects, Fixed Effects and Instrumental Variables models are used, respectively. In the preferred model, a fixed effects model where income is instrumented, we find that the household income per capita shows no significant impact on the height-for-age z-scores.
Highlights
During the period 1990s, there was a remarkable fall in the national prevalence of child undernourished in China
Since unobserved time-invariant factors (μ ) may be correlated with some of the explanatory variables, a Fixed Effect (FE) model is estimated. An example of such an unobserved factor could be the general level of economic development of the community which could exert a direct effect on nutritional status, and be correlated with household income
Household income shows no direct effect on nutrition, greater incomes mean that families can invest more in food consumption, access to clean water and effective health care
Summary
During the period 1990s, there was a remarkable fall in the national prevalence of child undernourished in China. The nutritional status of child i at time t, can be modeled as a function of household income, a set of child-specific characteristics (γ ), such as age, gender, health insurance, and a set of maternal characteristics ( ψW ), such as maternal education, mother’s height and weight, as well as the location dummies such as urban and north China:. Since unobserved time-invariant factors (μ ) may be correlated with some of the explanatory variables, a Fixed Effect (FE) model is estimated An example of such an unobserved factor could be the general level of economic development of the community (compared with other communities) which could exert a direct effect on nutritional status, and be correlated with household income. Failure to control for this simultaneity will generate biased estimates of income, and affect other covariates that are correlated with income
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