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Parental Consumption Decisions and Child Health During the Early French Fertility Decline, 1790–1914

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  • Weir, David R.

Abstract

This article re-examines the secular improvement in human heights in France. Adult heights reflect consumption as children, so the distribution of resources between children and adults, determined primarily within households, should have influenced heights. The intrahousehold distribution of resources was influenced by the level of income and by the calorie demands of working adults. Results show that the early decline of marital fertility in France was accompanied by a small but significant increase in expenditures on child quality as measured by heights. Reductions in mortality, independent of the level of food intake, also contributed to improved heights.

Suggested Citation

  • Weir, David R., 1993. "Parental Consumption Decisions and Child Health During the Early French Fertility Decline, 1790–1914," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 53(2), pages 259-274, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jechis:v:53:y:1993:i:02:p:259-274_01
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    Cited by:

    1. Carl‐Johan Dalgaard & Holger Strulik, 2016. "Physiology and Development: Why the West is Taller Than the Rest," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 126(598), pages 2292-2323, December.
    2. Vincent Bignon & Cecilia Garcia-Peñalosa, 2018. "The Toll of Tariffs: Protectionism, Education and Fertility in Late 19th Century France," Working papers 690, Banque de France.
    3. Hatton, Timothy J. & Bray, Bernice E., 2010. "Long run trends in the heights of European men, 19th-20th centuries," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 8(3), pages 405-413, December.
    4. Carl-Johan Dalgaard & Holger Strulik, 2015. "The physiological foundations of the wealth of nations," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 20(1), pages 37-73, March.
    5. Bailey, Roy E. & Hatton, Timothy J. & Inwood, Kris, 2014. "Health, Height and the Household at the Turn of the 20th Century," IZA Discussion Papers 8128, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Gilles Postel‐Vinay & David E. Sahn, 2010. "Explaining stunting in nineteenth‐century France," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 63(2), pages 315-334, May.
    7. N. F. R. Crafts, 1997. "Some Dimensions of the ‘Quality of Life’ During the British Industrial Revolution," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 50(4), pages 617-639, November.
    8. Ricardo D. Salvatore, 2020. "Stunting Rates in a Food-Rich Country: The Argentine Pampas from the 1850s to the 1950s," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-22, October.
    9. Tommy Murphy, 2015. "Old habits die hard (sometimes)," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 20(2), pages 177-222, June.
    10. Hatton, Timothy J. & Martin, Richard M., 2010. "Fertility decline and the heights of children in Britain, 1886-1938," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 47(4), pages 505-519, October.
    11. Timothy J. Hatton, 2015. "Stature and Sibship: Historical Evidence," CEH Discussion Papers 039, Centre for Economic History, Research School of Economics, Australian National University.
    12. Lee, Jinkook & Smith, James P., 2014. "Regional disparities in adult height, educational attainment, and late-life cognition: Findings from the Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)," The Journal of the Economics of Ageing, Elsevier, vol. 4(C), pages 26-34.
    13. Schneider, Ryan, 1996. "Historical note on height and parental consumption decisions," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 50(2), pages 279-283, February.
    14. Moradi, Alexander & Baten, Joerg, 2005. "Inequality in Sub-Saharan Africa: New Data and New Insights from Anthropometric Estimates," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 33(8), pages 1233-1265, August.
    15. Moradi, Alexander, 2010. "Nutritional status and economic development in sub-Saharan Africa, 1950-1980," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 8(1), pages 16-29, March.
    16. Stefan Öberg, 2015. "Sibship size and height before, during, and after the fertility decline," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 32(2), pages 29-74.
    17. Komlos, John & Baten, Jörg, 2003. "Looking Backward and Looking Forward: Anthropometric Research and the Development of Social Science History," Discussion Papers in Economics 59, University of Munich, Department of Economics.
    18. Francisco J. Marco-Gracia & Margarita López-Antón, 2021. "Rethinking the Fertility Transition in Rural Aragón (Spain) Using Height Data," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(16), pages 1-28, August.
    19. Duclos, Jean-Yves & Leblanc, Josée & Sahn, David E., 2011. "Comparing population distributions from bin-aggregated sample data: An application to historical height data from France," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 9(4), pages 419-437.
    20. Fogel, Robert W, 1994. "Economic Growth, Population Theory, and Physiology: The Bearing of Long-Term Processes on the Making of Economic Policy," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 84(3), pages 369-395, June.
    21. Heyberger, Laurent, 2007. "Toward an anthropometric history of provincial France, 1780-1920," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 5(2), pages 229-254, July.
    22. Birchenall, Javier A., 2007. "Economic Development and the Escape from High Mortality," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 35(4), pages 543-568, April.
    23. Richard H. Steckel & Roderick Floud, 1997. "Conclusions," NBER Chapters, in: Health and Welfare during Industrialization, pages 423-450, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    24. G. W. Grantham, 1993. "Divisions of labour: agricultural productivity and occupational specialization in pre-industrial France," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 46(3), pages 478-502, August.

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