Research

Publications:

An analysis of the accuracy of retrospective birth location recall using sibling data

Published version | Working paper

Many surveys ask participants to retrospectively record their location of birth. This paper examines the accuracy of such data in the UK Biobank using a sample of full siblings. Comparison of reported birth locations for siblings with different age gaps allows us to estimate the probabilities of household moves and of misreported birth locations. Our first contribution is to show that there are inaccuracies in retrospective birth location data, showing a sizeable probability of misreporting, with 28% of birth coordinates, 16% of local districts and 6% of counties of birth being incorrectly reported. Our second contribution is to show that such error can lead to substantial attenuation bias when investigating the impacts of location-based exposures, especially when there is little spatial correlation and limited time variation in the exposure variable. Sibling fixed effect models are shown to be particularly vulnerable to the attenuation bias. Our third contribution is to highlight possible solutions to the attenuation bias and sensitivity analyses to the reporting error.

Maternal stress during pregnancy and children’s diet: Evidence from a population of low socioeconomic status 

Published version

Objectives: This study examined the relationship between maternal exposure to stress during pregnancy and children’s food preferences and diet in a population of low socioeconomic status.

Methods: Indices of exposure to stress were constructed based on retrospective self-reported experience of stressful events during pregnancy (e.g., death of close family member, relationship difficulties, legal issues, health issues, financial issues, or other potentially stressful event[s]). Data were collected for >200 mothers of a low socioeconomic status with a child age 2 to 12 y. Data on mothers’ body mass index, current exposure to stress, current diet, and diet during pregnancy were collected at the same time, as well as data on children’s food preferences and current diet as reported by the mothers. Indices of the healthiness of food preferences and diet were constructed and used as outcome variables.

Results: Maternal exposure to stress during pregnancy significantly predicts children’s food and taste preferences, as well as their diet, in regression models controlling for maternal diet, current maternal stress, and demographic characteristics of both the child and mother. Higher average stress during pregnancy is linked with significantly less healthy food preferences and diet, as well as with weaker preferences for sour and bitter foods. This relationship is observed across different age groups.

Conclusions: Maternal exposure to stress during pregnancy could have long-term detrimental effects on dietary outcomes and thereby on health conditions related to diet. Prenatal care and preconception counselling could be critical to develop preventive strategies to improve public health.

Daily stressors and food choices: A lab experiment with low-SES mothers

Published version | Working paper | Poster

We investigate experimentally the effects of daily-like stressors on immediate and planned food choices, in a sample of low socioeconomic status (SES) mothers. We design a novel stress protocol that aims to mimic everyday stressors experienced by low socioeconomic status individuals. The protocol consists of budget and time allocation tasks to be performed under time and financial pressure. Immediate consumption is measured with in-laboratory consumption of low calorie and high calorie snacks; planned consumption is measured with an incentivized food shopping task. We find no evidence of a significant effect of the stressor on planned food consumption. We do find a notable increase in high-calorie snacking following the stress protocol but it is not precisely estimated. Overall, we find little support for the hypothesis that daily-life stressors induce unhealthy food choices.

Book chapters:

The prevalence, trends and heterogeneity in maternal smoking around birth between the 1930s and 1970s

Working paper

This paper shows the prevalence, trends and heterogeneity in maternal smoking around birth in the United Kingdom, focusing on the war and post-war reconstruction period in which there exists surprisingly little systematic data on (maternal) smoking behaviours. Within this context, we highlight relevant events, the release of new information about the harms of smoking, and changes in (government) policy aimed at reducing smoking prevalence. We show stark changes in smoking prevalence over a 30-year period, highlight the onset of the social gradient in smoking, as well as genetic heterogeneities in smoking trends.

Working papers:

Early life exposure to measles and later-life outcomes: Evidence from the introduction of a vaccine

Working paper | Poster

Until the mid 1960s, the UK experienced regular measles epidemics, with the vast majority of children being infected in early childhood. The introduction of a measles vaccine substantially reduced its incidence. The first part of this paper examines the long-term human capital and health effects of this change in the early childhood disease environment. The second part investigates interactions between the vaccination campaign and individuals' endowments as captured using molecular genetic data, shedding light on complementarities between public health investments and individual endowments. We use two identification approaches, based on the nationwide introduction of the vaccine in 1968 and local vaccination trials in 1966. Our results show that exposure to the vaccination in early childhood positively affects adult height, but only among those with high genetic endowments for height. We find no effects on years of education; neither a direct effect, nor evidence of complementarities.

Stress or failure? An experimental protocol to distinguish the environmental determinants of decision making

Working paper

Are economic decisions affected by short-term stress, failure, or both? Such effects have not been clearly distinguished in previous experimental research, and have the potential to worsen economic outcomes, especially in disadvantaged socioeconomic groups. We validate a novel experimental protocol to examine the individual and combined influences of stress, failure, and success. The protocol employs a 2x3 experimental design in two sessions and can be used online or in laboratory studies to analyse the impact of these factors on decision-making and behaviour. The stress protocol was perceived as significantly more stressful than a control task, and it induced a sizeable and significant rise in state anxiety. The provision of negative feedback ("failure") significantly lowered participants' assessment of their performance, induced feelings of failure, and raised state anxiety. 

Educational Gradient in Obesity and Dietary Behaviours: The Relevance of Economic Uncertainty

Obesity and overweight disproportionally affect those with a low level of education. Economic uncertainty has been suggested as a pathway in the causal link from education to dietary choices and body weight; its relevance is examined here both theoretically and empirically. Previous research argues that instincts to hedge starvation risks in historic times of food insecurity might cause individuals today to non-optimally gain body weight in the face of uncertainty. In my theoretical analysis, I show that rational economic decisions can also lead to adjustments in diet when facing uncertainty. If eating healthy is an investment in future health, rational utility-maximizing individuals will reduce their consumption of healthy foods when facing economic uncertainty. In my empirical analysis, data from the British Cohort Study 1970 (BCS70) and the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) is used to examine the relevance of financial, wage and job security as mediating factors in the link between education and body weight. My results suggest job and wage security among men and financial security among both genders to be significant mediating factors.

Selected work in progress:

Long-term health and human capital effects of early-life economic conditions

The influence of stress and failure on effort choices

The effects of stress and failure on dietary choices