Assessing the Intergenerational Effect of Prenatal Exposure to Acute Malnutrition on Infant Mortality: Evidence from the Great Leap Forward Famine in China

Shige Song, Queens College and CUNY Institute for Demographic Research (CIDR)

Using two large nationally representative sample survey datasets from China in 1988 and in 2001, I study the potential inter-generational effect of prenatal exposure to the 1959-1961 Great Leap Forward Famine in China on the risk of infant mortality of the next generation by comparing women born during the famine (1959-1961) to women born either earlier (1956-1958) or later (1962-1964). Preliminary results show that, contrary to what many people would expect, prenatal exposure to famine decreases the risk of infant mortality of the next generation. The results hold even after controlling for the possible selection effect caused by differential abortion and fetal loss. I discuss possible explanations and things to be done in the future.