Obesity and labor market outcomes: evidence from the British NCDS

Arbeitspapier

We study the effect of obesity on wages and employment, using data from the British NCDS. The results show a significant negative association between obesity and labor market outcomes even after controlling for a rich set of demographic, socioeconomic, environmental and behavioral variables. After instrumenting with parental obesity the associations are no longer significant. We show that the intergenerational correlation in obesity is mainly due to genetic variation. However, the instruments do not always pass the overidentification tests and are sometimes weak. We are therefore somewhat sceptical about using parental obesity as an instrument.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: IZA Discussion Papers ; No. 4099

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Health: General ; Demographic Economics: General
• Subject: Obesity ; wages ; employment ; labor ; endogeneity ; Gesundheitsrisiko ; Lohn ; Arbeitsverhältnis ; Großbritannien

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Lindeboom, Maarten ; Lundborg, Petter ; van der Klaauw, Bas
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)
• (where): Bonn
• (when): 2009

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/35307
• URN: urn:nbn:de:101:1-20090403122
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:44 AM CET