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Red Alert: Prenatal Stress and Plans to Close Military Bases

Author

Listed:
  • Kyle Carlson

    (Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology Author email: kcarlson@caltech.edu)

Abstract

In May 2005 the US military announced a restructuring plan called Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC). Some areas were projected to lose 20 percent of employment, sparking much distress. Previous research shows that stress affects pregnancy and fetal development. This study finds that immediately following the announcement, the mean gestational age in the most affected areas dropped by 1.5 days for a period of one to two months. Births shifted from 39+ to 37–38 weeks, a period linked to health risks. Similar changes appear in birth weight. Local changes in employment and mothers' characteristics do not account for these effects.

Suggested Citation

  • Kyle Carlson, 2018. "Red Alert: Prenatal Stress and Plans to Close Military Bases," American Journal of Health Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 4(3), pages 287-320, Summer.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucp:amjhec:v:4:y:2018:i:3:p:287-320
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    File URL: https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/pdf/10.1162/ajhe_a_00102
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Andrea Kutinova Menclova & Steven Stillman, 2020. "Maternal stress and birth outcomes: Evidence from an unexpected earthquake swarm," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(12), pages 1705-1720, December.
    2. Clark, Andrew E. & D’Ambrosio, Conchita & Rohde, Nicholas, 2021. "Prenatal economic shocks and birth outcomes in UK cohort data," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 41(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    stress; birth weight; employment; government spending;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
    • N50 - Economic History - - Agriculture, Natural Resources, Environment and Extractive Industries - - - General, International, or Comparative

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