Does Childhood Nutrition Predict Health Outcomes during Adulthood? Evidence from a Population-Based Study in China

Early life conditions have profound long-term health consequences over the life course. However, previous studies concentrate almost exclusively on the detrimental impact of fetal and early childhood malnutrition on adult health; by contrast, little attention has been paid to late childhood nutrition, which is also highly relevant in one’s growth trajectory and health outcome. This is the case especially in developing countries. We use data recently collected from a nationally representative sample survey of the Chinese population to explore the impact of late childhood nutrition intakes on adult health. The underlying linkage between childhood nutrition, adult height and a broad range of subjective and objective health indicators will be examined.