The Lifelong Costs of Urban Smogs

Alastair Ball ()

No 10691, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: Exposure to smoggy days is a common part of urban life, but can be avoided by vulnerable populations with municipal investment in warnings. This paper provides the first evidence on the long-term effects of early exposure to smog. Variation comes from exposure to the Great London Smog of 1952. Affected cohorts are tracked for up to sixty years using the Office of National Statistics Longitudinal Study. Exposure to the four day smog reduced the size of the surviving cohort by 2% and caused lasting damage to human capital accumulation, employment, hours of work, and propensity to develop cancer.

Keywords: pollution; fetal origins; Great London Smog (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I12 I18 Q53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 42 pages
Date: 2017-04
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea and nep-his
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Air pollution, foetal mortality, and long-term health: Evidence from the Great London Smog (2015)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:iza:izadps:dp10691

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