Birth Weight in the Long Run

Abstract

We study the effect of birth weight on long-run outcomes using data on Swedish twins born between 1926–1958 linked to administrative records spanning entire life-time labor market histories. We find that birth weight positively affects permanent income and income across large parts of the lifecycle; the timing of the birth weight-income relationship is in line with the role of birth weight in determining take-up of sickness benefits and morbidity. The effect of birth weight on labor market outcomes even for cohorts born 30 years apart are similar; for short run health outcomes, birth weight plays a decreasing role over time.