A new GLO Discussion Paper examines the effect of one of the largest nutrition assistance programs in early life covering poor rural China. Nutrition supplements effectively increase boys’ weight and reduce their probability of being underweight, while no effect is observed for girls of similar age.

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GLO Discussion Paper No. 740, 2020

Gender Inequality in Nutrition Intake: Evidence from a Large Assistance Program – Download PDF
by Wang, Qing & Zhang, Shiying

GLO Fellow Shiying Zhang

Author Abstract: This paper examines the growth effect of one of the largest nutrition assistance programs in early life. The program covers 5.8 million children in poor rural China and provides 6-24-month old children with a free nutrition supplement that contains nine essential micronutrients. We utilize a phase-in procedure by county for identification and estimate its impact on several early-life health indicators. Robust evidence shows that such nutrition supplements effectively increase boys’ weight and reduce their probability of being underweight. No effect is observed on girls of similar age. These health indicators are related to long-term human capital development. The gender differences in policy impact that are identified in this paper have important implications for nutrition subsidy in the early years of life in developing countries.

GLO Discussion Papers are research and policy papers of the GLO Network which are widely circulated to encourage discussion. Provided in cooperation with EconStor, a service of the ZBW – Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, GLO Discussion Papers are among others listed in RePEc (see IDEAS,  EconPapers). Complete list of all GLO DPs – downloadable for free.

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