Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP18274
Authors: David Jacks; Krishna Pendakur; Hitoshi Shigeoka; Anthony Wray
Abstract: Despite a recent and dramatic re-evaluation of the health consequences of alcohol consumption, very little is known about the effects of in utero exposure to alcohol on long-run outcomes such as later-life mortality. Here, we investigate how state by year variation in alcohol control arising from the repeal of federal prohibition affects mortality for cohorts born in the 1930s. We find that individuals born in wet states experienced higher later-life mortality than individuals born in dry states, translating into a 3.3% increase in mortality rates between 1990 and 2004 for affected cohorts.
Keywords: alcohol; federal prohibition; in utero exposure; later-life mortality
JEL Codes: H73; I18; J18; N32
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| in utero alcohol exposure (I12) | mortality rates due to unrelated causes (motor vehicle accidents) (I12) |
| exposure to the Great Depression and New Deal spending (E65) | later-life mortality rates (J26) |
| in utero alcohol exposure (I12) | later-life mortality rates (J26) |
| transition from dry to wet status (Q25) | in utero alcohol exposure (I12) |
| legal availability of alcohol during in utero period (L66) | increased mortality rates for heart disease and stroke (I12) |