XML FeedsEffects of Urban Sprawl on Obesity
By CostBenefit on Oct 26, 2009 | In Health, U.S., Academic Study/Journal Article, Transportation, Sprawl & Smart Growth, Regulatory Analysis, Research Institute NGO NonProfit, Costs and Benefits, Socio-Political-Cognitive-Economics
Link: http://papers.nber.org/papers/w15436
In this paper, Zhenxiang Zhao and Robert Kaestner examine the effect of changes in population density—urban sprawl—between 1970 and 2000 on BMI and obesity of residents in metropolitan areas in the US. The authors address the possible endogeneity of population density by using a two-step instrumental variables approach. They exploit the plausibly exogenous variation in population density caused by the expansion of the U.S. Interstate Highway System, which largely followed the original 1947 plan for the Interstate Highway System. Zhao and Kaestner find a negative association between population density and obesity and estimates are robust across a wide range of specifications. Estimates indicate that if the average metropolitan area had not experienced the decline in the proportion of population living in dense areas over the last 30 years, the rate of obesity would have been reduced by approximately 13%.
by Zhenxiang Zhao and Robert Kaestner
National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) www.NBER.org
NBER Working Paper No. 15436; Issued in October 2009
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