The Impact of Positive and Negative Income Changes on the Height and Weight of Young Children

Thomas Buser, Hessel Oosterbeek, Erik Plug (), Juan Ponce () and Jose Rosero
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Juan Ponce: Flacso

No 8130, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: We estimate the impact of changes in unearned income on the height and weight of young children in a developing country. As source of variation we use changes in the eligibility criteria for receipt of an unconditional cash transfer in Ecuador. Two years after families lost the transfer, which they had received for seven years, their young children weigh less, and are shorter and more likely to be stunted than young children in families that kept the cash transfer. We find no effect on young children's height and weight two years after gaining the cash transfer. Information on household expenditures suggests that a reduction of food expenditures by households that lost the transfer is the main mechanism behind this finding.

Keywords: poverty reduction; developing country; health outcomes; cash transfers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C31 H51 I14 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 52 pages
Date: 2014-04
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Published - published in: World Bank Economic Review, 2017, 31 (3), 786–808

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Related works:
Journal Article: The Impact of Positive and Negative Income Changes on the Height and Weight of Young Children (2017)
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