August 2022

IZA DP No. 15511: Early Life Circumstances and the Health of Older Adults: A Research Note

published as 'The path to healthy ageing in China: a Peking University–Lancet Commission' in :The Lancet Commission Report, 2022, 400 (10367), P1967 - 2006

This paper reviews the latest evidence of the effects of early life circumstances on old-age health, distinguishing in utero exposures from childhood exposures to a wide range of environments. We then leverage the growing number of studies of the impact of the Great Chinese Famine (1959-1961) on the health of older adults to perform a meta-analysis and discuss potential mechanisms. Recent studies assembling multiple domains of early life circumstances are evaluated to better understand how various circumstances may coalesce and manifest in shaping long-term health.