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Early Nutrition and Cognition in Peru: A Within-Sibling Investigation

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  • Outes-Leon, Ingo
  • Porter, Catherine
  • Sánchez, Alan

Abstract

This paper examines the causal link between early childhood nutrition and cognition, applying instrumental variables to sibling-differences for a sample of preschool aged Peruvian children. Child-specific shocks in the form of food price changes and household shocks during the critical developmental period of a child are used as instruments. The analysis shows significant and positive returns to early childhood nutritional investments. An increase in the Height-for-Age z-score of one standard deviation -keeping other factors constant- translates into increases in the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT) score of 17-21 percent of a standard deviation. The period of analysis includes the recent global food price crisis that also affected Peru between 2006 and 2008. This therefore is also a quantification of the nutritional and subsequent cognitive costs of food prices on the sample, which could be magnified in later years.

Suggested Citation

  • Outes-Leon, Ingo & Porter, Catherine & Sánchez, Alan, 2011. "Early Nutrition and Cognition in Peru: A Within-Sibling Investigation," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 3430, Inter-American Development Bank.
  • Handle: RePEc:idb:brikps:3430
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    Cited by:

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    3. Perkins, Jessica M. & Kim, Rockli & Krishna, Aditi & McGovern, Mark & Aguayo, Victor M. & Subramanian, S.V., 2017. "Understanding the association between stunting and child development in low- and middle-income countries: Next steps for research and intervention," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 193(C), pages 101-109.
    4. Castro, Juan F. & Rolleston, Caine, 2018. "The contribution of early childhood and schools to cognitive gaps: New evidence from Peru," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 144-164.
    5. Elisabetta Aurino & Francesco Burchi, 2017. "Children’s Multidimensional Health and Medium-Term Cognitive Skills in Low- and Middle-Income Countries," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 29(2), pages 289-311, April.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Health; Nutrition; Cognitive Development; early childhood development; Peru;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I20 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - General
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth

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