Life Cycle of Health, Productivity and Consumption

The analysis draws attention to the whole life cycle relationship between health, labor productivity and utility function. Man's health-biological (HB) cycle is inverted U-shaped. It has the obvious growth or upward sloping segment and a declining segment. The peak is considered to be the maximum achievable biological development. The height and slope are determined by nutrition, quality of environment and habits. They vary depending on the degree of deprivation of health inputs. Some evidence from medical research is presented in support of likely HB cycles. The HB status at each age determines in turn, mental and physical capacity for work. Likewise it determines the utility function or time preference and current demand for goods and leisure. The paper focuses on labor productivity which is a result of the interaction between the capacity supplied by labor and the capacity required by jobs. Poverty is seen to pull down capacity supply and underdeveloped processes to raise capacity requirement. The gap would tend to result in low productivity. Concurrent and life cycle productivity behavior is clarified.